


Sippin' Serenade

by Alchery



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alcohol, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), College/Bartender AU, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, Gay Keith (Voltron), I really do mean eventual smutt, Keith and Shiro are Siblings, M/M, Mutual Pining, Other, Slow Burn, This will have a twist that i cant tag because it will be a spoiler, bisexual Matt, demisexual shiro
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-17
Updated: 2018-08-06
Packaged: 2018-10-06 09:37:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 57,699
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10331723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alchery/pseuds/Alchery
Summary: Keith is a college drop out that works as a bartender at The Lion's Castle to pay off his wasted loans.Lance is an old classmate of Keith's.One day Lance comes to the bar much to Keith's displeasure...until he opened his mouth.He certainly wasn't expecting that.(( Tags characters be added and rating will go up as it goes. Slow burn. ))





	1. Dry Martini

**Author's Note:**

> Here I have stories on hiatus and I started a new fic… Oh well! Anyway, yes, this is my first Voltron fic that I have posted.
> 
> The chapters are named after drinks, so the recipe for them will be in the endnotes – with oz and ml – after each chapter. There will be a song in almost every chapter as well. Please note that most of these are to make one drink at a time.
> 
> Thus why this is called Sippin’ Serenade! Enjoy!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit: I had to make some changes since I somehow messed up the beginning and end notes for the story, but here they are again. Also! There is now art that goes to chapter one from [yaboybokuto](http://yaboybokuto.tumblr.com/)! [bitterkeiths](http://bitterkeiths.tumblr.com/) surprise commissioned this for me after an art piece I was working on for S.S. was corrupted ( literally months of work was gone, I was more than just devastated. ).

**Chapter One: Dry Martini**

 

Keith isn't much of a drinker. Yeah, maybe a Jack and Coke here and shot of Kahlua there, but it wasn't often enough to be called an alcoholic. Most times when people walked up to him, people assumed that because he works as a bartender, he drinks quite a bit. It's a horrible stereotype, but all he does is shrug his shoulders and gives them a vague acknowledgement to them. Tonight, Keith starts the night shift, which means dealing with more drunks and more people who ask if he's a drunk. As much as he dislikes the slight abuse and rowdiness of some customers, it means he and the other bartenders get more tips – there had been more than one occasion where customers wouldn't be able to tell the difference between a dollar to a hundred-dollar bill. Those kind of people Keith and his fellow bartenders secretly _really_ liked. Especially when the customers insisted that they gave the correct amount.

The Lion's Castle, a small live entertainment lounge and restaurant, was full of people when he walked out of the employee's room. Usually, he'd be clocking out and heading home, but he needed the extra cash and they needed extra help. Literally a Win-Win.

Every Friday night, which was tonight, they were doing their usual mic-night. People could sign up a week before hand and perform for the bar. If they were honestly good enough, they'd be asked to perform more often rather than having to sign up. So far, only three people had managed to get call backs from them. They were all very good performers, especially since his brother Shiro who was one of the three regular perform to get call backs all the time. Keith had been to his brother’s practices and seen him do a few performances before heading home. Keith wasn’t just saying he was good because Shiro was his brother, he meant it. He, like the other staff members, all had a look at the performance list in the back room. His brother was playing, which he was grateful for, but he wouldn’t be the usual opening act – he had school after all. Instead, it was one of the newbies who had first performance of the night, one of many. It was something in Spanish.

He slowly walked the length of the bar, checking to see if everything was in its place, cleaned and restocked. Yeah, he wasn’t the bar manager, but he liked knowing everything was where it was supposed to be. One too many times did someone put a bottle where it didn’t belong and caused them to mix drinks incorrectly. Coran, the bar manager, and Allura had been on their asses whenever that happened. As he finished his walk, the bar got busier, the seats began to fill and he was quickly summoned for drink after drink by person after person. He had a year to practice, so he was quick with a glass and swift with a jigger, not to mention he’d add on occasional flare with the mixer and the bottles. It was like his own small bit of performing that he practiced at home. After many broken bottles and glasses with plenty of cuts to prove it, it showed how good he was.

It wasn’t as loud as one would expect, but usually it was much quieter on the days when they didn’t have their mic-night. People always wanted to see who was playing now that the bar had gained a pleasant reputation. Not to mention every Friday night there was a half-off price on their drink special for that night, and who couldn’t resist tonight’s well-made dry martini made with Russian Standard?

After an hour had passed of his 7-hour shift, the announcer came on stage. The lights dimmed – minus the soft light blue back lighting from the liquor case behind him, the crowd’s voices lowered to a soft murmur and he introduced the first act, something called El León con Encanto – he could be wrong, he can’t speak it anyways. They’d never had a Spanish act before, at least not while he’s been working here. The lights turned off after the announcer left the stage and it was quiet for a moment. Soon, the lights gently turned on that glowed a soft blue, just a few shades darker than the lights used on the case behind Keith. A stool stood in front of the mic. Maybe it was a Latino Jazz singer?

A man then came out on stage with a confident smile, his gaze scooping out the room – not really looking for anyone in particular, but just making sure that all eyes were on him. The blue lighting made his dark skin a little lighter than it might be, but what had Keith’s attention, and seemingly everyone else’s, were those small blue eyes. You’d think that you wouldn’t be able to see the blue of them from how far away her was, from how small his irises are, but the way that blue lighting hit him made his eyes shine. It was like putting blue sapphires right into his eyes. And he knew he wasn’t just thinking it, he could hear the people around the bar talk about him, some drawing their eyes just enough to show their attention to who they were talking to, others not even bothering to look away. Keith’s customer didn’t even complain when he stopped in the middle of putting ice into their martini glass to chill.

He was wearing a pale blue button up shirt, the sleeves rolled up just before they reached his elbows, and black slacks and shined black dress shoes. His brown hair was parted and slicked back, with just a few strands of his bangs hanging against his blue-light tinted, dark skinned face. He was, Keith had to wholeheartedly admit, gorgeous.

The music started, piano playing powerfully and graceful, a bit of pop mixed into it, but the first some odd notes made the atmosphere perfect.

Then he opened his mouth.

_“Voy por tu calle cada día_

_El tiempo ya no pasa más_

_Tan lajeos de ti la vida muy fácil no es._

_En mi silencio viviré_

_Y mi último aliento gastaré_

_Te esperaré, yo sigo aqui, di que vendrás.”_

His voice was higher than he thought it would be, but his voice was powerful, he hit those soft low notes without faltering, held the notes without his voice shaking, and let raw emotion in whatever he sang poor out of his mouth and he small gestures.

_“Después serás me vida entera tú_

_Y lucharé para decir: cero en los dos!_

_Porque tú eres esa música que al alma va_

_Yo junto a ti no caeré, no caeré, nooo...!”_

The sudden high notes brought a shiver down his spine at how well he hit those high notes with what seemed to need little effort. But what got him and the rest of the crowd more, was how much stronger and dynamic his voice became. The emotion that lies behind it all, as if he were talking to them. Not that he or possibly anyone understood what he was saying…unless you speak Spanish, which Keith did not.

_“Es por ti no me canso de vivir y viviré_

_Así será dentro de mi, vivirás y sonarás._

_Quisiera ver en tu mirar._

_En cada instante en ti vivir_

_Sintiendo que siempre estarás dento de mi._

_Aquí, así, an mi camino sólo tú_

_Me llevarás dentro de ti, te amaré!”_

It was at this point that Keith was honestly wishing he knew how to speak Spanish, he was sure the guy he was serving wished to, too. The words were beautiful and he was sure that the translation was more so.

He watched as the dark-skinned man walked up to the stool and took a seat as he sang. His backside wasn’t as bad as the front-

“Excuse me, can I get a dry martini, please? Stirred, if you please.” A guy asked Keith quietly. It was loud enough for him to catch, but not enough for him to disturb both the crowd and the performance. Keith looked over and nodded at the man, who didn’t even pay him a simple glance his way. He had dark brown hair that was slicked back with a bit too much gel. His skin in the light looked an unhealthy white, but he could see that he was still fairly built, but he couldn’t tell under that slightly loose dark suit he wore. And those eyes…it almost made a shiver run down his spine, and not exactly in the best way. The strange man continued to listen to the younger on stage sing his heart out to the audience, still captivating them.

As Keith made the older man’s drink, he realized that he had been neglecting his duties just to fawn over a new performer who he hadn’t met yet. His cheeks were dusted with a light pink in embarrassment as he mentally berated himself for his mistake. By the time he finished the drink and served it, the young man had already finished his song and was bowing to the loud rounds of applause he was getting.

When Keith finally looked up, he was already walking off the stage and behind the curtain. A wave of disappointment rushed through him for a moment. With a small shake of his head, he brushed off the feeling and turned his attention back to the odd man.

“That’ll be $7.25, sir.” As he told him the price for the drink, a $10 was dropped right in front of him on the bar with a keep the change. Taking his chilled glass, the man up and walked off into the crowd. Keith looked on for a moment before looking down at the dollar. Did this count as a tip??? He couldn’t tell. But the man made him feel awkward and he was rather please that he left, so he didn’t bother calling after him and asking if that was the case or not. With a shrug, Keith took the bill and headed to the register as the stage was being cleared and readied for the next performance.

 

* * *

 

Keith took his break three and a half hours later  during the intermission between the performances. He walked into the back, down a small hallway and into the kitchen, just as his brother and his other three bandmates walked into the back-kitchen door.

“You know, Allura would be furious if she found out that you’re all using this door…again.” Keith chuckled as he walked up to them, arms crossed and a smug look. “Ya know… She’s in her office. I’m sure she’d _love_ to see you right now.”

Shiro had just let the door close behind him when his bandmates walked in before him and gave his brother a near desperate pleading look. “You wouldn’t.”

“I might.”

A stare down happened and the kitchen cooks kept a close eye on the two. Not that they would start anything, except that one time the brothers – and admittedly some of the cooks and the head chef as well – got into a food fight. But the cheeky verbal fights and the tense stares made for good entertainment for them and Keith knew it. He admitted that he would occasionally give Shiro a hard time just for their sake, not like he really gonna turn him into his boss anyways…probably.

Keith was the first to break the tension and chuckled, giving his older sibling a shove in the arm to get moving. “You know, you should still go see her. I’m serious when I say that she would love to see you.” He followed his brother out of the kitchen and towards back stage, but not without seeing his brother and friends swipe some food that the cooks had no problem handing out to them.

“It’s a busy night for all of us! I don’t want to bother her when she’s working on a night like this.” Shiro said as he and his brother followed his bandmates through the kitchen. The head chef smiled and shook his head, but handed each of the boys, minus Keith, a small something to eat to have before or after their performance. “Who was the opening act?” He asked as they slunk out of the kitchen and to the door labeled “Employees Only” that lead to backstage and dressing rooms.

“Some Latino guy. He was pretty good, but eh.” Keith played it off as best he could. He didn’t want to admit that he was maybe better than his brother and didn’t want to hurt his pride by letting some validation of that.

Shiro and his bandmates stopped in front of the dressing room that had a white sheet of paper with their band name on it. Him and his bandmates stared at him.

Uh oh.

“Wait, wait…” Nyma put her unoccupied, lightly artificial tanned hand up as she spoke. She was their pianist. “Did you say he was pretty good?” She suddenly had a smirk on her pink glossed lips. Her hair was in pig tails at the base of her skull, curled and sunny blonde with two streaks of purple in each tail. Her almost dark purple looking eyes sparkled with what Keith knew to be mischievous. “You said he was “pretty good”. You never say that about any of the new performers!”

“And you said “him”, so it was a dude, right? Ooooh~” Rolo, their drummer, chimed in with a laugh, mirroring the look his girlfriend had. He was dark skinned, his hair bleached and dyed to the closest shade of white he could get, and his eyes a dark brown. “Does that mean someone fell at first note?” He teased.

The shortest of the bandmates, Breezer the bassist, chuckled into his fist. A quiet teen and Rolo’s cousin. His tanned skin and light brown hair, which would be a dead give-away that they were related. If you had ever seen Rolo before he bleached his hair, you would have thought they were twins had it not been for the major height difference. Breezer’s auburn eyes shined as he laughed.

Keith glared at the three of them and then to his brother when he heard the chuckle next to him. His face felt like it was sunburned even though it was in the middle of winter.

“I guess there is someone out there better than me, huh?” Shiro chuckled out as he followed his bandmates into the dressing room.

“No and I never said that!” Keith exclaimed from the door frame. They all chuckled at him as they unpacked their instruments.

“Don’t you need to get back to work or, better yet, go flirt with the guy who practically serenaded you?” Nyma grinned, checking her make-up and hair in the mirror.

Keith almost seethed as his face continued to get hotter. “Whatever. I’m going now!” As he walked away from the dressing room, Shiro leaned out of the room, asking if he needed a ride home after his shift. He wholeheartedly declined.

He needed to tell Allura or at least Coran that Shiro and the others finally got here. On his way to the office, rounding a corner, he ran right into the chest of someone turning far too quickly than they should have. They fell to the floor and slowly sat back up with a groan. Keith rubbing his back as best he could from the fall. The person was still on top of him as he sat up.

“Watch where you’re going you-!”

“Oh my god, I’m sorry, I-!”

Keith looked up with a scowl at the person on top of him and his eyes blew open from their pursed state. There, looking down at him worriedly and apologetically, was the Latino singer he had just seen on stage not two hours ago. He was dressed out of his white button up and slacks, replaced with a blue and white shirt, a green jacket, a dark blue scarf hung and unwrapped around his neck, and blue jeans. His skin was darker than the lighting on stage made him out to be. It looked so smooth and unblemished. His hair wasn’t slicked back like it was on stage, but it was certainly a lot shorter than he originally assumed it to be. And, wow, his eyes. His iris’ were small, but so blue – a navy blue – and they shined, and looked a little more worried now.

“Um…?” The voice came from the person above him. Keith snapped out of his little daze, unknowing until now that he had been staring at this guy longer than he realized. He shook his head a bit and apologized. “You okay? You look a little out of it. Maybe you hit your head a little harder than I think you did.” The guy moved back and stood up, offering him a hand.

The black-haired man looked at the hand for a moment and took it, letting it hoist himself up, a little wobbly, noticing now that he landed on his butt harder than he did his head, but otherwise fine.

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it? I didn’t think I’d see you in a place like this.” He chuckled out with cavity inducing smile.

Keith stared at the guy for a moment. Had they met? “I’m sorry?”

“We all – well, not really me, per se – were wondering what happened to you after you left! Who would have thought you’d be working in a place like this!” The guy said with half hearted enthusiasm.

Keith, however, continued to stare at him confused. “Uh, who are you?”

A pregnant pause suddenly spread between them. The darker skinned man looked at him as if Keith had insulted him.

“Who am I? Uh, the name’s Lance?” The guy, Lance, stated. When Keith didn’t say anything, seeing as how nothing clicked for him, he continued. “We were in the same music classes together back at Garrison University?”

Keith knitted his eyebrows together in thought. “Really? Are you a music history major or an instrumentalist?”

“No! Well, kinda…I’m a singer! We were, like, rivals. Ya know, Lance and Keith, neck and neck!”

A light went off in his mind. “Oh wait, I remember you.” Lance’s face lit up at that, it was kinda cute. “You’re the guy who transferred from music history and was behind by a few weeks of work.” It seemed oddly specific, but that was the only thing he remembered.

His cheerfulness dropped and he looked just as hurt as he was insulted.

“Yeah, well, not anymore.” Lance said with a stinging bitterness. “I’m not only caught up but number one in the music department, thanks to you washing out. And for the record, I didn’t transfer, I was on the backup list for when someone dropped out!”

Keith scowled. Suddenly, Lance wasn’t so attractive. “Well, congratulations.” He huffed out and moved around Lance and back around the hallway. He couldn’t understand why he was being treated this way! Wasn’t Lance happy he remembered him? Isn’t that what he wanted? Apparently not. He guessed that look was for something else entirely. “Now if you’ll excuse me, _Lance_ , I have work to do.” As he walked to Allura’s office, he heard the other man scoff and a pair of feet walk away with weight to them.

He slowed to a stop and turned back around to look at the now empty corner where he and Lance stood. He was never good with words, he could admit that, which was weird seeing as he was a bartender. Keith realized the way he recalled Lance from when he was in college was…not the best. Shiro use to reprimand him whenever his tone didn’t come across the way it was supposed to. It got him into a lot of unnecessary fights.

With a sigh, he ran his fingers through his hair and made his way to Allura’s office. With a quick rap on the door, her voice ringing **,** though muffled with permission to enter. She sounded a bit irritated. Almost peeking in, Keith looked around the door to see Allura sitting at her desk with her head slowly shaking back and forth in her hands, her near white hair pulled up in the fluffiest ponytail he had ever seen flowing with her movements. Papers were neatly stacked by her opened laptop and her planner on the other, all but one of her pens and pencils were in their holder at the corner, her lemon scented candle was lit in the other corner, books were placed perfectly in place on the bookshelf behind her, and the floor was clean of the usual crumpled papers around the trash can. Everything was in the proper place and the business was running smoothly tonight. So what had her in a mood that would make her look so…? To be honest, who knows, but it was never good.

“Allura?” Keith spoke up after a moment. Allura rubbed her face and looked up enough to see over her finger tips – you could almost see her pink tattoos that were at the corner of her eyes. She was irritated if the twitching brow was anything to go by. She sighed and brought her hands down to the wood of her desk.

“What can I do for you Keith? Are you on break?” She asked, trying to calm herself.

“Um…Shiro and the others arrived about ten minutes ago.”

Suddenly, she wasn’t so irritated. Her gaze softened and she let a small smile slip as she finally relaxed, her shoulders slumped to show she wasn’t feeling so tense anymore. He chuckled at her reaction. Moving into the room and closing the door behind him, he took a seat in one of the two dark grey leather chairs in front of her desk.

“He didn’t come in through the kitchen, did he?” She lightly chuckled out.

“By “through the kitchen”, do you mean in through the swinging doors and back out or the loading dock doors?” Keith asked not so innocently. His brother and bandmates teased him. Of course he was gonna tell Allura, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t have some fun with it. She shook her head disappointedly, but her small smile didn’t falter.

“Of course they did…” She mumbled. “Well, tell them not to do it again –”

“For the um-teenth time?”

“– or I won’t book them for another gig here ever again!”

“You always say that, but you keep booking them anyways.”

“Oh, shut up. I mean it this time.” She said, leaning forward and grabbing her pen and planner to make it look like she was busy.

“You’ve said that before, too.”

Allura chuckled and looked back at him. “Is there anything else?”

“No. Not unless you wanna talk about why you looked so irritated before I came in?” Keith asked, leaning back in the chair and crossing his legs, his ankle resting on his knee. With a sigh, she closed her planner and plopped back where it was, pen resting on top of it. She took a moment as if debating if she should tell him whatever it was that got under her skin.

“You saw that new performer we had on stage tonight, correct?” She asked, some of her irritation seeping out again as she closed her eyes and rubbed her temple with one hand. She must be starting to get a headache.

Oh.

“You mean Lance?” Keith blurted out. Allura looked at him in a bit of shock.

“How do you know Lance?”

“Well, I didn’t recognize him at first, but we use to go to college together. Or, at least, we had the same classes together. I didn’t actually know him.” Keith admitted. “Why? What did he do?”

“Nothing, really…” The older woman sat up in her swivel chair and shook her head. “He asked if he could keep playing here without having to constantly sign up over and over again every week.”

That made some sense. From what he remembered, he was a bit persistent with their teachers not long after he registered into his classes.

“And?” Keith asked, a bit curious.

“And I told him that if he can keep up performing every Friday night for the next two months or so, he’d be on the list permanently like your brother is.” She said with a sigh.

“Oh. Okay.” He shrugged. It didn’t matter to him, really. He didn’t work Friday nights.

“By the way, since I’m posting the schedule tomorrow, I might as well tell you now.” She sat up straight and tapped away at her laptop before turning it around. She was in boss mode. “I’m changing your nights.”

Keith’s brain stopped for a moment.

“Wait…What?”

“You’ll be working nights here in the lounge on Thursday’s and Friday’s rather than evenings on Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s. You actually get Tuesday off instead of Friday’s. The rest of the evenings in the restaurant’s bar are normal.”

“Can I ask why?” Not that it was that big of a deal, he never had anything to do those nights, but she didn’t make sudden changed for nothing. And now that he was looking at the spreadsheet with his co-worker’s names on it, he noticed that just about everyone’s schedule changed, along with some new names.

“I’ve decided to hire some new staff now that we’re getting more and more popular. And since you’re not good with people you don’t know all too well, I’m assigning you to train Katie’s brother Matt.”

Matt, Katie’s brother – or Pidge, her stage name that everyone seems to call her more often than her real name – is a college student as well, just finishing up his Masters and moving onto his Doctorate in a few months. He Keith could never remember the name of the field he was studying to be in, but he knew it was some sort of scientist type of degree.

“Cool. Is this gonna be temporary?” He asks, using the touchpad to see how many hours he’s working now.

“Maybe. Depends on who decides to stay or not. Matt will be starting off as a bar back, so you don’t need to worry about teaching him how to make drinks yet.” Allura turned the laptop back around when Keith was finished. “Not only that, but I wanted to ask you if you didn’t mind doing his training – not that I think you’d have a problem with it since I already assigned you.”

“No, not at all. So he’s gonna be just a bar back, or…?”

“Since you’re one of the few people who has been here the longest, I thought I’d let you decide if he should become a bartender’s apprentice. He’d make more money that way.” Keith hadn’t been there since day one, but he certainly wasn’t a rookie at this point after working for her for so long.

“Ah, right. His student loans need to be paid back.” He muttered to himself. He knew all about having to pay off student loans. That was why he was working at The Lion’s Castle in the first place. Despite having been working there for as long as he has, he wasn’t even close to paying off his own.

Keith stood up and stretched, his arms above his head, tilting his neck side to side enough to get the kinks out from sitting. He wasn’t much of a sitter when he works. Speaking of which…

“Well, my break is almost over. I need to head back to the bar, make sure no one has messed anything up or pissed anyone off.” He said, making his way to the door.

“That it is.” Allura smiled, looking at the time on her laptop. “Don’t get too mad at someone. I don’t want to see a complaint file.”

He chuckled and left the office, but not without a bit of teasing first. “You should go see Shiro before he goes on stage.”

 

* * *

 

Back behind the bar after his break, Keith seen that Pidge and Hunk were working on the stage, preparing for Shiro’s band and a few of the other performers that night. It was the first time he had seen them all night. They usually were there at the club before he arrived and quickly working on the stage during his break. Sometimes he barely got to see them before either he or them were off work. Just as Keith was grabbing two collins glasses to fill for a customer that ordered from one of the tables, Pidge happened to make eye contact and quickly bound over to him.

“Keith, I hope you’re still here for your brother’s performance~” She chimed as she hopped on one of the unoccupied stools at the bar.

He sighed as he sat one of the full glass down on a tray for the waiter to take. “Pidge, you may be 18, but you can’t sit there. You’re not 21.” Setting down the other glass, the waiter took the tray and left. Keith leaned over and replaced his elbows where the tray was and kept eye contact with the young girl. “And no, actually. I have a few projects that I need to wake up early for so I can finally finish them.”

Hunk comes up behind Pidge and leans on the barstool back she sits on. “You still haven’t finished those?”

He shrugs and pulls out a damp cloth from under the bar. “No, but I have about a week left to finish them. Not like they’re hard to do, there’s only two of them, and I find it relaxing to do so I don’t rush them unless I have a big order.”

Pidge slouched in the stool, her head resting on Hunk’s arm as she groaned at Keith. “Whyyy?!”

“Why what?”

Hunk shook his head. “You know she won’t let you do it and if you do, you’ll get in trouble, then I’ll get in trouble, then Coran will get in trouble and then –”

“Hunk.”

“And then Allura will get super mad! And if you catch this place on fire, she’ll skewer us both!”

“Hunk, relax! I checked everything, it’s not gonna burn down!” She said with a proud smile.

“What are you planning now?” Keith asked. This certainly was more important than mindlessly wiping down the bar and pretending like he was doing work. This is was his livelihood at stake. The one of two jobs keeping him on his feet and paying his college debt.

The bigger of the three sighed and ruffled Pidge’s hair. “She wants to do some pyrotechnics for your brother’s band’s performance.” He said flatly.

“Shiro would have your head.” Keith said flat out, face deadpanned. Shiro is a nice guy, he’s honestly nice to pretty much anyone, but even he had his limits.

“But it’d be so cool!” She whined, leaning back forward and draping herself over the bar and out of Hunk’s grasp. Keith and Hunk shook their heads with a small smile. She really did try hard to make every performance stand out.

“Lance was easy to please at least.” Hunk chuckled.

“That’s true…” She grumbled.

Keith said nothing. He knew that despite the names listed on the board, they performers had no choice but to give their real name for liability purposes. He still couldn’t get over the stupid name Lance had given himself for his stage name. Really? Shaking his head, he tossed the used rag into a bucket under the bar and then poked at Pidges forehead.

“I need you off the bar young lady~” Keith sing-songed, repeatedly poking her in short increments.

“Shut up…”

“You also have work to do by taking anything fire related off stage before Allura or Shiro find out.” Keith muttered as he kept poking.

“He has a point.” Hunk said, waving a goodnight to Keith before turning away back to the stage.

“You guys just like to suck the joy out of things….” She whined as she slowly lifted herself off the bar and out of the chair. Keith chuckled lightly at her. Matt would find out soon what a hand full she could be working here.

Shiro and his band were always the ending act. Their music was soft and slow and a great way to end the night. When Allura first mentioned the idea, they had no objections. They liked to come early and listen to some of the other people who were entertaining for the night to get a feel of how the night would be going. They’d go back to their dressing room, discuss what songs to perform for that night that would help flow to the calming wined down of the night.

Keith would honestly love to see his brother perform. It had been a while, but he knew he needed home as soon as his shift was over. That Lance guy really took him on a roller coaster.

Soon, the stage was set, customers were starting to swarm to get their drinks before the next performance started. It was an original by a new artist who sat and played guitar on a stool. The sound was light and swift as wind, though the occasional mess up with a chord, it was good.

As Keith listened to the music of them and the other performers, he remembered when he was at GU, learning Music Theory, Music History and Instrumental Vocal Singing Ensemble. Sometimes he’d even go to the lyric writing lectures that happened every so often…on rare occasions he’d sneak to the academy and still attend them when he knew when they were.

His heart and teeth clenched at the thought that now he was kicked out and in debt because they claimed he had disciplinary issues. Yeah, he had a temper, he could admit that, but that wasn’t the problem. Lance appearing tonight and bringing up him being kicked out didn’t make him feel any better, either.

Keith took in a sharp breath and ran his hands over his face and around his neck, trying to pull himself out of his memories that turned sour. He had work to do and a paycheck to earn.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I didn’t give Shiro’s band a scene, but I honestly wanted to try to keep the songs that actually appear to be limited to at least. But they will get their chance, I promise you!
> 
> Since the chapters and the story are named after actual drinks, I thought it be wrong to not give y’all the recipe to the drinks the chapters are named after! So if you’re over 21 and looking to try and make the drink the chapter is named after, you can get them right here! If you liked this, feel free to leave a comment and a kudo! They are always appreciated! And if you want to read more, bookmark this and never miss an update! You can find me here on tumblr!
> 
> I picked this drink because I knew this chapter was gonna be dry and fairly unpopular and went off of that. That’s literally the only reason, but it worked out well in the story.
> 
> Song: Musica ( Spanish Version ) by Paolo Menaguzzi. I love both the Italian and Spanish version of this song. I finally found an excuse to use it in a fic and I am DAMN PROUD.
> 
> This chapter’s drink: Dry Martini ( Vodka ) –
> 
> 1 2/3 oz ( 50 ml ) vodka  
> 1/3 oz ( 10 ml ) dry vermouth  
> Green olive 1 - 3  
> Ice cubes


	2. Pomola

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After his shift, Keith comes home to the sweet tune of the piano as he heads to bed. Music he hears every night that eases his mind and body into a peaceful slumber every night. 
> 
> If he ever had the chance to finally meet this person, speak to this person, he’d tell them how beautiful the music they made was.
> 
> He was about to get that chance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Second update already! And over 350 views!! HOLY BALLS WOW!!
> 
> I know the first chapter was long and dry (( Ha )), but this is only the tip of the iceberg! I got some surprises up my sleeves, give it time. This is a slow burn for more than just their relationship.

** Chapter Two: Pomola **

  
  


Keith arrived home around one in the morning. The last few hours of work had brought more drunks than he had expected. He let out a sigh and leaned against his apartment door. His bag slipping off his shoulder, coat barely hanging off his arm as he lazily kicked his shoes off. His feet always hurt in those fancy but cheap shoes he bought for work. Well, they were cheap for a reason.

His apartment was small, but it was perfect for him. As he looked around his tiny abode as he stepped out of the small entryway, he let out another sigh. The living room was a mess, at least to his standards, but it could wait until his day off. Till then, he made a bit more of a mess by dropping his bag onto the disheveled couch, causing the small pile of books on the cushion to crash to the floor. Keith jumped at the sudden sound and waited for the neighbors to bang on the thin walls from the sudden sound, only to relax when nothing came from next door, above, and especially below him.

Leaving the books in their place on the floor for later, Keith dragged his tired butt to his room. The night had been longer than he expected. Turns out Friday nights at Lion’s Castle was busier later in the night than he originally thought. Last time he worked one of these shifts was months ago. He guessed that in the time that he wasn’t working Friday nights, they got more popular with their live performances. Not that he was complaining, it’s just that he hadn’t noticed the great increase of people in his previews shifts – in his previous schedule.

As he walked to his room, he heard the faint sound of music coming from his window. A knowing smile graced his lips. For the music to be as loud as it is through his closed bedroom window meant the night was perfect enough for whoever was playing the piano in the apartment complex next to his own, to have their window open as well.

It was always soft and comforting to hear. He never heard anyone from outside, even so late at night, complain about the sound of the piano coming from across the gap between them. Then again, if someone did have a complaint, there was no real way to complain if you didn’t live in the same building. And he still played, obviously not bothering anyone else in his own building. And Keith loved it. He loved hearing that music play every night ever since they moved in almost six months ago. It’s been six months of restful sleep that he hasn’t had in a very long time.

More than six months prior, his nights were of him laying in bed with his overly occupied mind running thousands of miles an hour, keeping him awake for most of the night. He’d wonder if he had enough money in the bank to pay for his bills, his college loans, and his food and necessities. If him not moving back home after he was kicked out was really the best thing for him. If not taking his parent’s and Shiro’s advice to just enroll in a different school to get his degree was a smart choice. He would toss and turn and worry over mundane things that didn’t need to be worried over. Then there was that sudden night when he heard the sound of piano music playing sweetly as he sat in bed looking at his bank account on his phone. His worry for the seemingly lack of funds in his account faded away as he sat back and listened to the melody. Keith ended up falling asleep that night. He woke up the next morning sitting up against the headboard with his phone in his hand. Aside from sleeping upright, it happened every night thereafter, letting his worries melt away. Letting him fall asleep with a kind of serene feeling he hadn’t had since he was a child. And whoever they were, he was grateful to them.

While Keith got dressed for bed, he listened to the slightly muffled sound of the piano keys, he felt the tiredness from the day and his shift wash over him. The soft yet light tune was relaxing. He didn’t know if there are any words to this tune, but he didn’t mind not hearing. The music was beautiful, and if he could, he’d thank them for playing this after such a long day. And just as he slipped his light weight tank top on, he walked over to his window and opened it a little.

A soft breeze that came down the alley softly moved the curtain he had placed up, gently brushing against his skin, and man did it feel good. He didn’t realize just how hot he was in his uniform until now. Looking out the window, he seen across the alleyway and through the pianists window part of the piano in the open window that the music flowed out of. He couldn’t see the keys nor the hands that make the music, but the one light near where this person sits at the bench was turned on – dim, but bright enough to let them see what they’re playing.

Keith turns and sits on his bed, letting the music he hears over take him, relax him more. He doesn’t know what time it is when he finally falls asleep, but the music sends him off to where his dreams are of playing music again going to school and getting his degree. Making Shiro and his parents proud at graduation. Fulfilling his dream. Unlike at the Lion’s Castle, listening to this music, the memories and the dreams he had didn’t hurt.

\---

8 AM came all too quickly, and he only knew this because his phone was suddenly going off. The familiar personal ringtone meant only one person would be calling at this ungodly hour. Still in bed, his face planted into his pillow, Keith reached down to the floor for his pants. He had forgotten to put his phone on the charger last night he was so tired.

Keith’s bed may never have been the most comfortable, but he always slept well after falling asleep to that piano music. A groan rumbled in his throat, and wanting to stay in bed for a little longer, slid his foot out from under the covers and grabbed his toes. With surprisingly practiced skill, Keith tossed his pants up into the air for them to land on his back, only for his phone flying out of the pocket it resided in and hit him square in the head.

He whined as he reached for his phone the slid down his head and now rested against his neck. Without looking, he answered his phone with a tired and irritated gruff.

“Why in the hell do you do this to me.”

“Because I love you and you didn’t say goodbye last night..this morning.” Shiro’s voice was way too cheerful for someone who was up until 3 AM this morning. Keith has sworn it for years, Shiro isn’t human. Never has been, in his book.

Keith rolled onto his side and away from the window for less light in his eyes. “What? Did you get yelled at last night for going through the kitchen again? You’re not that nice, Shiro.”

“You told her anyway, unbelievable…” Shiro had moved the phone away from him as he spoke, more to himself than to Keith. He sounded exasperated. Well, if he didn’t get called out for it last night, he would later.

Still worth it.

Shiro came back, his voice louder. “I’ll have you know,” He started after his mild complaining to thin air. “that I am always nice! Remember when I taught you how to swim?”

“You tossed me in the lake with a noodle and told me, ‘don’t drown’. Nice brothers don’t do that kinda thing.” Keith deadpanned.

“Yes they do. It’s in the big brother’s handbook.”

Keith groaned and ran his hand over his face a few times to both wake himself up more and prevent him from blowing up so early in the morning to his brother. He didn’t need another lecture. “Why are you calling before 9?”

“Because, little brother of mine, I heard through the grapevine that you haven’t called mom and dad in a month and a half and they’re getting worried.”

There was a beat of silence between the two of them. Shiro made no move to say anything more than that. He just waited for Keith’s sleep induced mind to speed up with the rest of his awakened body.

“...oh shit…”

“Theeeere it is!”

Keith let out another groan and once again buried his face into his pillow.

“They’re on vacation at the moment, something they were hoping to tell you, but seems like you’ve been busier than usual to pick up the phone.” Shiro said calmly.

“...I know…”

“Calls can go two ways, you know.” Shiro lectured.

“I know they do Shiro and yes, I have been busy. I was going to get up two hours from now and try and finish my projects, but you instead woke me up at this ungodly hour.” Keith growled out as he sat up in bed, ignoring Shiro’s mutter of him questioning why he hadn’t finished those yet. “Too late now, though. You called. And at 8, no less. That’s it. Morning officially ruined.”

“You know, you use to like getting up early before classes to work out.”

“I liked the working out part, not so much the early morning part.”

Shiro chuckled. “Whatever makes you feel better. Just please call mom and dad at some point today? They don’t care what time it is, just call them.”

Keith leaned against the wall with a tired smile, looking at a few of the framed photos he had of him, Shiro and their parents. “I will, I promise. Things have actually been busy, enough for me to not get them done. But I will. Hopefully today if someone would let me hang up.”  
“Oh come on, we rarely talk!” Shiro laughed. “And seeing you at the lounge doesn’t count since you’re working most of the time.”

“It totally counts.” Keith muttered under his breath. If Shiro heard or not, he ignored it.

“At least I know my sweet brother is crushing on someone-”

“Hanging up now.” Keith said loudly, but quiet enough to hopefully not disturb his neighbors.

“-who only had to sing an-!”

The call was cut off abruptly by Keth. He didn’t need to hear it. Besides, he now knew who the singer was even if he didn’t recognize him at first.

With a slow stretch and a long yawn, he hauled himself out of bed and dug into his drawers for clothes to change into after a quick shower. He could admit to himself, that being awoke earlier than he planned did mean he had more time to do things, despite the bed looking so comfortable and inviting. But he needed that shower desperately. If his pants didn’t give it off, then his hair did with the smell of cigarette smoke from last night lingering on him. It made him want to choke.

Last night he had to deal with some asshole blowing smoke on him before his shift ended. Some drunks truly needed the company, music and the drinks to wash away their loneliness and sorrow at times. It didn’t happen as often as people think, but it did happen. Sadly, he got one of them last night, and they had to be a heavy smoker. A shower was in fact needed, and although he thought about taking his shower after, he realized it would be better if he did it now. He didn’t want the smell of tobacco on him to rub off onto his projects. He’d never forgive himself for that.

Fresh out of the shower, Keith was smoke-smell free. With loose sweats with red briefs peeking out at the band and a towel around his shoulders to collect the remaining water from his long hair, he walked out to his living room and plopped down on his couch, the other items on the couch shifting with his movement. He’d finish one of his projects now and call his parents after. Seeing as how he hasn’t called them in a while, there would be a very long conversation to be had, which meant possibly being late to work.

\---

Keith prefered a motorcycle to a car. He didn’t need to worry about backseat drivers and despite his love of music, he rather preferred the sound of the wind whipping past him be the music to his ears. It kept his mind off needless topics and his eyes on the road. It wasn’t to say that he didn’t enjoy listening to music in the car, just not when it’s him behind the wheel. There were plenty of times where he and Shiro would have jam sessions in the car when they were at a stop light. Those drives didn’t happen as often, but those jam sessions were special. This was his quiet time.

He was a block away from his apartment, sitting at a stop light when he felt his phone vibrate in the breast pocket of his dark red leather biker jacket. His eyes still on the lights, he dug his phone out and quickly looked at the screen. It read ‘SHIRO’ on the lock screen, a picture of his brother before he went missing as his call background. Keith sighed and put his phone away. He could only guess what he wanted to say and just let him keep ringing his phone until he parked his bike. With his two saddlebags and podium bag filled with frozen and perishable foods, he was antsy to get back home. Shiro could wait a minute or two..

As soon as the light changed to green, he was off like he was racing against the rest of the cars around him. The vibrating in his pocket kept going until it finally stopped as he got to his building. But as he whipped around the corner of the complex to the building’s shared garage, a figure suddenly darted out in front of him. In a panic, Keith skidded to a halt, nearly toppling over onto the cement with both his bike and himself as he avoided the person.

Hefting his bike back up and taking a deep breath, he jerked his helmet off his head and glared at the idiot who ran out in front of him. “What the FUCK is wrong with you?!” He shouted as soon as his head was free. However, as soon as he laid his eyes on the person, his eyes widened. As did Lance’s.

“You have got to be kidding me…!” Lance breathed out with a scowl. “You literally run into me at the lounge and now you almost run my ass over - on top of not even remembering who I am! And this is what I get?!”

Keith squinted his eyes, still glaring at this idiot. “You RAN in front of ME! Of course I almost hit you!”

“You should have been looking where you were steering that thing! And what the hell are you even doing here? Stalking me now that you remembered who I am?” Lance glared, arms crossed and foot tapping as he waited for an answer.

“I was looking and I should be asking you the same question! Why are you at my building?” Keith felt the vibrating in his pocket again, but ignored it.

“Uh, I live here? That should be apparent since I just came running out of the main entrance?” Lance gestured to the building across from Keith’s, speaking as if that was common knowledge that he lived there.

“And I was supposed to know that how?” Keith sighed, turning his bike off. No use wasting the gas sitting out here as he argued. He’ll push his bike into the garage. “Besides, I live here too, nitwit.” He grumbled, pointing to his building.

As they stared at each other, silence ensued as the new information between the two sunk in.

The vibrating from Keith’s phone stopped.

Wait…

“You live in that building?” They asked in unison.

“How long have you lived over there?” Lance asked, eyeing Keith a little suspiciously, but the dark haired man gave the same look back.

“I’ve been here almost two years now. Why have I never seen you out here before?”

“We kinda live in different buildings, but other than that, I don’t know why we haven’t seen each other! I’ve only been living here for six months! Maybe we’ve been luckily missing each other.” Lance said with a huff, his posture straightening and nose upturned.

Keith lost all anger and irritation as he gave a more more confused look as he eyed Lance. “You...You’ve only been here for six months?”

“I do believe I have established that, mullet.” Lance raised an eyebrow at the look that was directed at him. “What of it?” He snapped.

“You…” Keith hesitated. He could be wrong. Lots of people move in and out of places every six months or so, right? Maybe it wasn’t him! But...then again… “You wouldn’t happen to play piano, would you?”

Lance’s eyes widened a bit and he relaxed his stiff posture. “How did you know that? I never played any piano in class before you got kicked out.” He walked up to Keith, who was still sitting on his bike, and looked at him questioningly. “Are you actually stalking me, Keith?”

As Keith’s mouth went dry, his phone began to vibrate again.

“Do you live on the third floor?” Keith asked quickly, staring at the Latino with shock slowly rising to his features.

“Uh….Yes?”

He shot off another rapid question as soon as Lance finished his answer. “Do you keep your window open by the fire escape outside your apartment?”

“What? How - Yes, I do - Why do you know I do that?!” Lance took a small step backwards.

“And you play the piano every night between eleven at night and two in the morning?”

“Dude, what the heck?” He muttered more to himself. “You’re seriously starting to freak me out.” Lance said with hesitance, taking a small step back from Keith. “I mean, you’ve already said you don’t live in my building. So, if you’re not my neighbor and you’re not stalking me...” he trailed off a bit. “You’re not stalking me, right? I mean, you didn’t even remember my name last night at the lounge! So if you are a stalker, you’re a pretty bad one, mullet. But yes, I do play piano at night. Now just how in the hell do you know that?”

Keith was officially shocked. Out of those six months, with their windows open and Keith’s balcony, they never saw each other across the alleyway.

The vibrating stopped.

“I literally live right across from you and your building.”

There was another brief moment of silence as the two took in the information, their eyes slowly widening, never left the other’s gaze. Keith’s mind whirled and whirled like a cyclone ride at the county fair.

The vibrating in his pocket began again.

For the past six months, the beautiful piano music the soothed him every night, that helped the stress of his day wash over him like water, that calmed him when he was in a panic, was Lance. A sudden ringing went off, breaking them out of their flabbergasted staring contest.

Lance jumped and scrambled for his phone in his jean pocket. Looking at his phone, he blanched. “Oh fuck, I’m gonna be late!” Just as he was about to take off running again, Keith grabbed his arm before he was out of reach.

“Wait!” Keith said in slight panic. Lance whipped his head around, about to make a comment of some sort as he made to yank his arm out of Keith’s grip, but Keith beat him to it. “I’m sorry.”

Lance stopped, confused and a little shocked. “Excuse me?”

“I said I’m sorry. About almost running you over. And….for being a bit of an…” Keith paused, evaluating what he was going to say. Shiro always told him that patients yields focus and that it even helped with his social problems. He bit his lip as he thought before continuing. “Um, for being an ass, yesterday. I don’t handle a lot of social interactions all that well. So...I’m sorry.”

Lance’s arm came out of Keith’s grip easily and without force. They both looked away rubbing the back of their necks, neither knowing how to assess the situation.

The vibrating stopped again.

“It’s, uh...no problem.” Lance finally said. “But, uh, I need to get going or I’ll miss my bus to school.”

As he quickly walked off, Keith turned around on his bike as he watched Lance leave. “You’re just gonna forgive me like that?!” He wasn’t angry, but he was certainly surprised.

“Nope, but it’s a start!” He shouted back as he turned and jogged backwards. “I’m gonna be seeing you at the lounge more often than not, right? And you live across the alleyway. I don’t have much of a choice!” Lance waved a goodbye and was off around the corner of Keith’s building to the bus stop.

The vibrating in Keith’s coat pocket started again, but he didn’t reach for it right away as he just continued to look down the alley. His mind was still reeling in from the whole situation - from the sheer coincidence of Lance being there and living there.

Finally, he dug into his pocket and answered his phone.

“Keith!” When Keith didn’t answer right away, Shiro started to panic. “Keith?! Is everything okay?! Nothing happened, right?!”

He shook his head, despite knowing Shiro couldn’t see it. “No, no, nothing happ-....Well, yes, something happened, but nothing serious.”

Shiro’s voice suddenly became stern. Big Brother Mode, Keith called it. “What happened?”

“I found out the guy with the Spanish stage name at the lounge has been the one who has been playing the piano across from my apartment for the past six months…” He said.

Shiro suddenly busted out laughing. So loud, in fact, that Keith jumped and moved his phone as far from his ear as his arm could reach. It started off as Shiro unable to get a word out, but as he settled down, Keith brought his phone back to his ear.

“Uh, what’s so funny?”

“The person you’ve been musically crushing on for the past five months is the same guy you oh so quickly crushed on last night!”

Keith’s cheeks turned bright red.

“I didn’t get a crush on him last night!”

“You can’t lie to me, little bro. It’s destiny.”

“Why are you like this? Especially when no one is around? No one ever believes me when I tell them you’re an awful brother.”

“Because I’m not and you love me….And that El León con Encanto~!” Shiro started laughing again.

Keith sighed and face planted on one of the handles of his bike. He wasn’t going to live this down.

“I’m so telling mom and dad!”

“Don’t you dare!”

“I will if you didn’t talk to them today~” Shiro teased.

“I did! Oh my god Shiro, I called and talked to them before I left for work!” Keith snapped out of mild irritation and great embarrassment.

“Good. Then you can get back to swooning over your Latin lover!”

A loud groan from Keith echoed out of the alley way. “Shiro!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys really liked chapter two! Kudos and comments/constructive comments are always appreciated AND if you want to read more, bookmark this fic and never miss an update!
> 
> The song was from the movie Palmeras en la Nieve, also known as Palm Trees in the Snow, ( Piano ). The original score is by Lucas Vidal. To be completely honest, I haven’t seen the movie, but I am planning to once I find it subtitled. But I loved this song when I heard it and needed this in the story. It will appear again, but with vocals! So keep this song in mind! It’ll have meaning down the road.
> 
> This isn’t an actual alcoholic cocktail, so it’s called a mocktail instead of a cocktail because there is no alcohol in it. I found this by fluke on an app I have on my tablet (( I’m a studying bartender )). I figured Keith isn’t one to drink much in the last chapter and went with it in this one.
> 
> This chapter’s drink: Pomola ( non-alcoholic ) –  
> Dash ( a bottle cap full ) of grenadine  
> 1 oz ( 30 ml ) lime juice  
> 5 oz ( 150 ml ) cola
> 
> Pour grenadine, lime juice and cola into a collins glass filled with ice and gently stir. ( Optional: Add wedge of lime as garnish. ) Makes one drink at a time.


	3. Adios Motherfucker

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Game night - the monthly ritual that Lance, Hunk and Pidge have had since the three of them met where they relax and complain about the week and gossip a bit.
> 
> Lance seems to be learning something new every week.
> 
> And so does Pidge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update! I planned to have this out earlier today, but things got a little busy! This is a bit of a short chapter, but I'll make up for it in the next! And thank you guys so much for the kudos!! And 550+ views!! Wow!! I'm honestly amazed every time!
> 
> This chapter takes a break from Keith and focuses on our Garrison Trio! Enjoy their game night!

**Chapter Three: Adios Motherfucker**

The university was a short bus ride away. Despite having a car of his own, he prefered to use it only when he had to do long distance drives or had to go shopping for food. What little money he made was put towards school, keeping himself alive and putting gas in said car he barely uses. You’d think, for someone who lived on his own and had a car he barely uses, that he was a trust fund kid, or a kid that came from money, or - worse yet - whoring himself to the sexy and curvy blonde landlord that lived on the first floor of the building so he could live there for free. As interesting as those theories were, none of them are true.

Lance was instead house sitting for his older sister Jess. Well, apartment sitting. At least for the time being. His sister had graduated from Garrison University for photography journalism and she had an amazing job opportunity about six months back to travel the world taking pictures for some magazine he’d never heard of. She had such short notice that she didn’t have time to give her notice to the landlord that she was going to be moving out. In a fleet of panic, and possibly brilliance, she decided that since her dear brother Lance - who was now attending Garrison University - could live there and take care of the place either until her lease was up or until she came home.

Neither knew what that choice was yet, now six months later. Thankfully she paid a three year lease, but that lease was about at it’s end.

But here he was, moved into an apartment with some furniture and a few possessions that belonged to his sister, the rest being his own things from home and his old dorm. Jess had quickly sold off most of her things that she knew she nor Lance would need so she could afford some of her own personal accommodations along her travels. Hunk, Pidge and his family helped him move his things into the apartment; including his grandpa’s old piano.

As he stood in the tight crowd of people on the bus, he scrolled through the newest email from Jess. She occasionally sent him pictures of where she has been on her travels. This time, she was in Iceland and in some town he couldn’t announce for the life of him. There were some of her professional pictures that didn’t turn out as well as they should have and there were selfies from her phone. One of them was of her at night with the aurora borealis dancing in the starry sky behind her. She was wrapped up in a fluffy hooded coat with some of her dark brown hair peeking out in some spots, ski goggles pushed up enough to cover her forehead, and a scarf pulled halfway down her chin to give her camera phone a toothy smile.

That smile was contagious even when it was just from her picture. Lance knew he was smiling like an idiot and that people could see it. He didn’t care if he looked like a grinning idiot either. For his family, it was worth the cheesey sap.

The bus came to a halt, to which Lance looked up in a bit of surprise to see which stop he was at. Time had really passed while he was checking his email. Luckily though, it was the one he needed. Hopping off, Lance started walking over to the old red brick building that Hunk lived in just across the street from the bus stop. It looked old, but it was newly renovated just before Hunk had moved in. The elevator was new, the wallpaper was replaced to look more modern and the carpeting was replaced by hardwood floors. It certainly looked better than when they had come by to look at places. But at the time, they were only working one floor at a time. So Hunk’s floor was finally done before he moved in.

After the quick ride to the fourth floor, Lance slid across the hardwood floors to the first door closest to the elevator and knocked rapidly. The door quickly opened with a short blonde girl on the other side. She looked rather irritated.

“You’re late.” She grumbled out.

“Am not! I arrived precisely when I meant to. And my car won’t start because it’s too cold and besides, my heater needs to be replaced.” Lance calmly informed the smaller human. “Now, you gonna let me in or am I just going to have to pick you up to let myself in?”

They stared at each other for a moment, but Hunk came to his rescue. “Pidge, let Lance in. Do you really, honestly, want a repeat of last time?”

Pidge then moved out of the way. Last time Lance picked her up for not letting him in after 10 minutes, he tossed her on the couch, only for her to bounce off and onto the floor ass first. Thankfully Hunk has what seems to be the fluffiest carpet known to man, but it still hurt. Of course Lance had profusely apologized after it happened, but he did say he’d do it again if she didn’t let him in.

Lance and Hunk met Pidge her first week of school by chance. They were Sophomores, so they never had the same classes as her. Poor thing had gotten lost trying to look for the lecture building on her way from one of her classes. They had been on their way to the lunch hall as they were passing by, and they could see how flustered she was looking around. Being the nice guys they are, they stopped and helped. They found out that she was taking music classes like them so she could be a professional DJ. She didn’t have any majors, just a few minors to figure out what she thought would be best for her. She still doesn’t have a major, but they’ve been friends ever since.

As for Hunk, Lance had known him since they were Juniors in high school. Lance moved to his now family home from Florida when he was 15. They lived across from each other in different cul-de-sacs. Hunk’s back yard was behind his. When Hunk had come to visit for the first time, he brought over cookies and cupcakes. Lance told him how many of them were moved into their house and made different flavors for everyone to pick. Problem was everyone including Lance fought over every last morsel. Hunk and Lance became so close that Hunk and Lance may as well be brothers. Even their families have practically adopted the other.

Before graduation, they were prepared to say their goodbyes before parting ways for college. Lance wanted to be a professional musician and singer and Hunk a music teacher. They both thought that they would be going to separate schools, so they were prepared for a very tearful farewell. Turned out they not only applied to Garrison University, but they also both got in. They soon put in their request to move into the same dorm room. 

“Do you need me to ask my dad if he could order in the part for you?” Hunk asked from the kitchen, having overheard Lance at the door. “Pidge and I can fix it up for you.”

“That would be awesome of you. And be sure to tell him that I’ll pay him back! I’m not letting him not charge me again.” Lance shrugged off his jacket tossed his bag to the floor and plopped down onto the couch, Pidge joining him with a grunt.

Hunk walked out with a tray of different snack foods he made. As soon as he set the tray down next to a pitcher of iced Adios Motherfucker ( Lance begged for Hunk to make it when he found the recipe ), the two went at the poor tray like cats to a red laser light. Lance and Pidge were convinced he joined the wrong major. He should be a cook more than a music teacher. Hunk’s cooking skills would make Gordon Ramsey rethink his career.

“Hunk, buddy, my man, my hombre, I’ll keep telling you this until your ears bleed: You need to open up a restaurant.” Lance nearly moaned out. The chili cheese fries were a demanded food for every game night. Hunk made everything, from the cheese sauce to the fries, and always in a great amount. To Lance, if Hunk’s chili cheese fries were a person, he’d fuck them. Did Lance know it was weird? He did indeed, Hunk and Pidge had no problem reminding him so. Pidge, however, wasn’t one to talk.

“Oww…” Pidge muttered after she swallowed her food hard, wanting to give her input in the conversation. “Or at least do one of those food based YouTube channels so we can eat what you make to our heart’s content. Just don’t give these recipes away.” She gestured after picking up another bacon wrapped barbeque smokies. Something simple you can make by buying it at your local store, but Hunk always wanted to take the extra step despite being able to make store bought taste like a gourmet meal. He made the barbeque sauce himself and bought the bacon and sausages from a local meat market about two hours away.

“As great as that sounds, I’d rather not. You guys know I get camera shy.” Hunk said, snatching some veggie chips and homemade onion dip. That was a recipe Hunk’s girlfriend Shay made for him on occasion.

“How could we forget? You puked into the closest trash can when they were just walking around with the camera for the new school TV ad and they happened to pan to us.” Pidge stated dully.

“Yeah. Too bad they cut that out. I would’ve finally had my 5 seconds of fame, but you had to puke.” Lance whined.

“At least it all got into the trashcan.” Hunk muttered, his cheeks red with embarrassment.

“They should have made a separate ad just for the students and added that part. That would have been hilarious AND accurate.” Pidge chuckled, earning a chuckle from the two men next to her.

“Changing the subject, what’s tonight’s options?” Hunk asked. “Lance, that was your job tonight.”

“And it is a job that I have fulfilled!” Lance proclaimed proudly.

“Please don’t be anything lame like last time.” Pidge muttered before popping a chili fry in her mouth. It earned her a sideways glare from Lance, but he ignored her.

“We can do classic board games, card games or we can do one of those party games you do on game consoles.” He said, reaching over to his bag and flipping it open, pulling out a few of the games he picked out.

“That depends on what they are and if they’ll be boring or not.” Pidge stated again, adjusting herself to look over Lance’s shoulder to look at what all he was pulling out.

“For your information, I even brought a game that is known for breaking up friendships even families. I would know with my family.” He stated, pulling out a large box that took up the majority of his bag. “Monopoly, Supernatural Edition.”

Silence followed.

“Oh come on! You guys still haven’t watched that show?!” Lance whined, dropping the box into his lap.

“Nope. Sorry, man. Been busy with school - something you should be worried about yourself.” Hunk said.

“Not to mention, that show is your kinda thing, not ours.” Pidge added. “Not only that, Monopoly is so overrated.”

“Fine. Cards Against Humanity?”

“Did you bring one of the expansion packs?” Hunk asked.

There was more silence.

“Moving on. What about some JackBox?”

“The Party Pack?” Pidges asked, popping another smokie in her mouth.

“Yes.” Lance fired back quickly.

“Party Pack 1, 2, or 3?” She asked.

“You know I had to get the newest one they had.” He replied smugly.

“ So 3. Is it for console?” Pidge asked again.

“Of course!” Lance was almost insulted. Almost, since he had almost bought the board games instead.

“JackBox.” Pidge concluded with Hunk in tow.

“Awesome!” As Lance bounced off the couch and to the TV with the Hunk’s consoles, Hunk stole the Latino’s spot.

“By the way, how was the lecture yesterday? The free for anyone to come to one, right?” Hunk asked as he and Pidge readied their phones.

“Oh yeah! Had to take the bus to school since my car wouldn’t start yesterday either. But it was pretty good, actually. I almost missed it and the bus thanks to mullet.” Lance ended with a mutter.

“Mullet? You mean Keith?” Pidge asked, peeking up over her phone.

“Yeah!” Lance turned his head to look at the other two. “Apparently he lives in the apartment complex next to mine!”

“We know.” Hunk and Pidge said in unison.

“Well, I know you know but- Wait!” Lance whipped around so fast he nearly gave himself whiplash. “You guys knew he lived in the building next to mine?!”

“Yeah dude,” Pidge began. “we grew up together and my brother and I helped him move in.”

“And how did you know that Keith lived across from me?!” Lance shouted, pointing an accusing finger at Hunk.

“Lance, he works at The Lion’s Castle. I was curious and asked him before he left after his shift one Friday night.”

“And you didn’t tell me?!” Lance turned back around, only to fall flat on his back. “I’ve been betrayed.”

“You haven’t been betrayed Lance.” Hunk stated. “I only recommended the LC to you because I work there from time to time and I knew we happened to be one person short for Live Night. I didn’t think telling you Keith worked there was a requirement before signing up.”

“So betrayed...” Lance whined quietly.

“It wasn’t like we weren’t going to tell you, we just didn’t think it would be that big of a deal if you knew or not. Besides, I didn’t know you knew Keith until a few weeks after we met thanks to Hunk, so I haven’t betrayed you in the least.” Pidge added. “Now will you shut up, get your ass of the floor and start the damn game?”

“Fine. I’ll start the game. But I’m so gonna kick some traitor butt!” He proclaimed, starting up the game and whipping out his phone.

With the game loaded, names created, and round one began: “And who the fuck drives a motorcycle in the middle of winter!” Hunk and Pidge groaned. “He almost ran my ass over! He could have killed me!”

“He obviously didn’t since you’re here alive and well!” Hunk said, trying to keep it cheery and get Lance to quickly drop the subject.

“Too bad he didn’t hit a patch of ice…” Pidge muttered out.

“Too bad what?” Lance asked defensively.

“Nothing. Too bad he didn’t miss you though. You would have made it to the lecture with time to spare and we’d be playing some JackBox games without him as a distraction to you.”

“See what I mean?! Hunk, I told you he’s always been the source of all problems.” He whipped from Pidge to Hunk.

“Of course he is Lance.” Hunk said dully.

“And you, missy!” Lance turned back to Pidge again. “How is it that you know Keith? He was expelled before you even applied!”

“Like I said, my family grew up with his. They lived across from us and we all went to the same schools.” Pidge said, picking her answer for the challenge they were on.

“Okay, fair, but still!” Lance grumbled, not even paying attention to the answer he picked.

“It’s only 6 and I’m too sober to be dealing with this…” Pidge said, watching the TV screen as Hunk finally picked his answer.

“You’re not drinking.” Hunk and Lance in unison.

“Oh, come on! It’s college!”

“And if Matt finds out that we let you drink before you turn 21, he will have our heads...again.” Lance said, brows knitted together with both seriousness and terror. Hunk did nothing but rapidly nod his head, his look mirroring Lance’s.

They first time Matt found out his sweet sister Katie was drinking at a college party in her own dorm, he nearly had Hunk and Lance’s heads despite them not knowing it even happened.

“There’s some 7-UP in the fridge, Pidge. You can have that.” Hunk stated. “We’ll pause the game while you get some.”

“And while we get out death-by-alcohol drinks!” Lance chimed as he sat up straight on the couch, his mood suddenly better.

True to their word, the game was paused and only Lance and Hunk had their adult drinks.

“You know, going to college meant getting away from my parents, not suddenly gaining two more!” Pidge yelled from the kitchen, slamming the fridge door shut.

**\---**

A more than half empty pitcher, a tray full of empty snake plates, and three hours later, Lance was officially hammered. He had been the one to drink most of the Adios Motherfucker - Hunk having maybe half a glass still, just after his one he already had - and the strength of it showed. He didn’t have much of a tolerance to begin with.

“...stupid ass mullet - and who the fuck has a mullet as a hair style anymore?!” Lanced slurred out. They had moved from all JackBox games to a simple game of Call of Duty - two player only. Pidge and Hunk didn’t trust drunk Lance with a controler.

Pidge sat with her legs crossed and up on the couch cushion with Lance’s legs taking up most of her lap, feet partly propped on the armrest next to her. Where Hunk sat on the other end of the couch, he had one leg up resting on his knee since the other leg was currently being used as a pillow for Lance’s head.

“People who have mullets as a hair style, Lance. That’s who” Pidge said with no real emotion, her concentration primarily on the game.

“You do know that David Bowie had a mullet, right?” Hunk said, his eyes never leaving the TV.

“Well, yeah, but that was the 80’s! This is now! No one has mullets now!” Lance said, his voice squeaking at the end.

“Well Keith happens to be one of those people who has a mullet - right in the head!” Pidge said.

“Actually, would it be considered a mullet?” Hunk asked, his curiosity suddenly peaked. “I mean, usually it’s slicked back, isn’t it?”

“Not usually. Hunk, on your left.”

“Thanks Pidge.” Hunk shot the approaching opponent. “Either way, I think Keith rocks it.”

“Are you serious?” Lance slurred. “I thought you were straight!”

Hunk glanced down at the drunken man. “I am, but I can still appreciate a good looking person.”

Lance stared up at Hunk for a moment just as a grenade from the game went off. “Point taken.” He admitted.

The battle ended and Pidge and Hunk had their attention on Lance.

“Since I wasn’t at school the year you all met, wanna enlighten me on why you hate Keith so much?” Pidge asked. taking a sip from her soda.

“His fuckin’ mullet…” Lance began to mutter, only for Hunk’s hand to come crashing down on his mouth.

“Honestly, my part of the story is long, but Lance won’t admit why exactly he has beef with Keith - other than the fact that Lance was second best, but not best enough to get into the class he needed.” Hunk said with a shrug.

“Drunk Lance what is your beef with Keith?” Pidge asked as she played with his pant leg. Why would he wear ripped jeans in the middle of winter?

Lance started to laugh under Hunk’s hand and as soon has his mouth was free, he was laughing more. “Beef with Keef! That’s amazing!”

“He’s gone.” Pidge stated as she and Hunk watched Lance go into a laughing fit, nearly falling off the couch and out of their laps. Once that started meant in about 30 minutes he’s passed out.

“I keep telling him he needs to stay away from tequila, but he never listens.” Hunk sighed, pushing Lance into a sitting position to get up off the couch, only for said man to fall back onto the couch when Hunk let him go. “I’ll get the blanket and pillow for him.”

“Don’t forget the puke bucket!” Pidge called out. She watched as her friend turn onto his side and giggle into the back of the couch.

Pidge didn’t remember Keith saying anything bad about his classes other than the usual how boring they were. But then again, he didn’t always share what was going on with him - especially after what happened with Shiro. Their relationship changed as they got older and when Keith went to college. She knew that something had happened at one point during school, and maybe it had something to do with Lance and why even he wouldn’t tell what happened. Pidge couldn’t be sure. Maybe she would find out what happened from them.

Until then, Pidge sat there watching a laughing idiot, acting as if something wasn’t up with how Lance was acting. And if she was right, Keith was probably acting strange as well.  
t up with how Lance was acting. And if she was right, Keith was probably acting strange as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooohhh, what happened between Lance and Keith that not even Hunk knows? Is Keith also hiding something from Pidge?
> 
> Before you comment!: Yes. This is an actual drink and even I laughed when I found it. It was too perfect.
> 
> For ages, in case anyone was wondering: Keith, Lance and Hunk are 22. Pidge is 19, Shiro is 27, Matt is 26 and Shay is 20.
> 
> Does every chapter have to be named after drinks? In my opinion, yes. Because every drink name relates to what happens or is a foreshadowing of every chapter. Not only that, every drink has a level of intensity, sweetness, bitterness and bite. I literally spent more time than I should have putting into this than I should have, but I didn’t just want to name the chapters for no reason.
> 
> -coughs- like the first chapter. -coughs-
> 
>  
> 
> This chapter’s drink: Adios Motherfucker –
> 
> 1/2 oz ( 15 ml ) vodka  
> 1/2 oz ( 15 ml ) rum  
> 1/2 oz ( 15 ml ) gin  
> 1/2 oz ( 15 ml ) tequila  
> 1/2 oz ( 15 ml ) blue curaçao liqueur  
> 2 oz ( 60 ml ) sweet and sour mix  
> 2 oz ( 60 ml ) lemon-lime soda
> 
> Pour everything but the soda into a chilled highball glass with ice cubes. Top with lemon-lime soda and gently stir. Garnish not needed, but feel free to top it off with a lemon wedge and/or a cherry.  
> Please drink responsibly!


	4. Margarita Madres

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s party time at the McClain household for Lance’s little brother!
> 
> While the visit is mostly about celebrating, he also gets to spend time with his family that he hasn’t seen in a few months. It turns out the longer away from home he is, the more tame they have become.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry this is late guys! Life handed me some shitty cards real fast and I’ve been dealing with that while still trying to finish this. So many apologies to you guys and my editor! This is a lengthy chapter that’s centered around Lance and his family.
> 
> I’d also like to add that I honestly have no idea how 11 year olds are supposed to act, so I kinda winged it due to the pressure of getting this out as soon as possible. I based Lance’s family off the moment in the mind melding.
> 
> Thank you guys so much for over 800 views as well guy! Those alone are what help keep me going with this.

**Chapter Four: Margarita Madres**

 

A week had come and gone faster than Lance expected. Usually, he’d spend his time at his apartment either cleaning or working on his own music, but he and Hunk were going back home for the weekend.

Since his car was being iffy about running, they took the train. Lance and Hunk could admit that it was much faster to go by train since it saved them 30 minutes, but Hunk was bringing cake with him, so it made the train ride a little more of an issue than usual.

Lance and Hunk sat side by side on a fairly crowded train. Both had a large container on their lap and Hunk had another between his legs, steadied by his feet so it wouldn’t slip all over the place or be knocked over.

Travis, one of Lance’s little brother, was turning 11 this weekend and had begged Hunk to make his cake. After the treats Hunk has given his family over the years, it’s not a surprise that Travis had wanted Hunk to make his cake for him. Not that Lance could blame him, to be perfectly honest.

“You have everything right?”

“For the hundredth time, yes, Hunk. I have his presents from us, your cake decorating kit, and my meds in my baaaaAAAOH MY GOD MY BAG!” Lance panicked.

“YOU FORGOT YOUR BAG?!” Hunk shouted, his panic growing with every word. It earned a few glances from the other passengers. “WE’RE ALMOST TO THE STATION AND YOU SUDDENLY-!”

Lance suddenly started to snicker. “Relax, buddy, I’m just messing with ya.” Lance reassured, reaching behind him and patting his bag that was part way tucked behind him. “I got it.”

Hunk groaned in irritation. “Lance, that’s so not funny!”

“Your face when you thought I lost it was totally funny!” He retorted with a chuckle. “But seriously dude, relax. You’ve been on edge since we left your apartment. What has your boxers in a twist?”

Hunk let out a sigh. “I have a paper due by the end of the week and I’m not even sure I’ll be able to get it done.”

“You’ll be able to get it done. I’ll even help you depending on what it is.” Lance offered with a smile and a comforting hand on his best friend’s shoulder.

“Thanks Lance, but it’s for my Early Childhood Ed. course.” Hunk sighed and held onto the cake carrier in his lap. “I know that you have experience with kids because of your siblings and I don’t, but teaching you siblings how sneak food without your parents knowing isn’t something that would be considered teaching kids how to read music.”

“I still think it’s a good skill to have!” Lance nudged Hunk with his elbow. “You never know if the situation will ever call for it! I mean, my parents already worry that I’m gonna just end up on the streets-”

“Lance…”

“What? I’m not putting myself down, Hunk. I know it’s gonna be hard to gain star status, but I don’t want to be the next big whoever-they-compare-me-to, I want my own name. That means struggling to get food on the table.” Lance said with a shrug. They all had their dreams and Lance’s was to make a name for himself performing, composing and writing his own music. 

“You know they support you and that I would take you in if you needed a place to stay - they’d even take you back in!” Hunk tried to console him.

“I know, but I’ve made so much trouble for them, I don’t want to…” Lance trailed off, only to take a deep breath and throw Hunk a bright smile. “I just want to be the adult I am and take responsibility for my life.

Hunk looked at him with melancholy, but knew that when Lance didn’t delve into a subject he didn’t want to talk about now, he’d either brush it off or change the subject. “Lance, we just want to help because we care.”

“I know you do!” He said quickly, bringing his arm up and around Hunk’s shoulders, his smile growing wider. “And you’ll all be helping by being even bigger fans of mine!”   


“We already are fans, Lance.” Hunk smiled back. Lance’s smiles were contagious. “You have an amazing voice. If the past two weeks at the LC haven’t proved it, then the next few weeks will.”

“ _ We will be arriving at platform E in 5 minutes. _ ” The automated voice of a woman came over the intercom. Lance and Hunk stood, gathered up their belongings and made their way towards the doors.

“You have an amazing voice, too, bud! If you weren’t going to be teaching for a living I’d say we should just become a duet and take on the world!” Lance exclaimed.

“Yeah, too bad I don’t like having the camera on me though. That would honestly be pretty fun!”

“Right?!” Lance laughed. Him and Hunk did want to become big stars one day. But as they got older and closer to graduation, Hunk decided he would rather be a teacher than anything else. Lance didn’t mind that he had changed his mind. At first, Lance wasn’t even sure he was serious about becoming a music celebrity in the first place, but the more he immersed himself in music, the more he wanted it.

Lance and Hunk got off the the train and headed to the parking lot, where they met up with Lance’s mom and his little sister Ruth. Her dark brown hair was in low pigtails under her knitted lilac cap. Ruth, only 7, saw them first. The moment she did, her light brown eyes widened, checked looked both ways and then darting off to the two boys, ready to tackle them into a hug.

“NONONONO!” They both shouted as they saw her bolting over. She may have been small, but she could easily take anyone down. She slowed and pouted, stomping her foot to the ground.

“But I want a hug! I haven’t seen you guys in a bagillion years!” Ruth whined. Lance’s mom, Alicia, came up to them with a sigh.

“You can give them a hug after they put their stuff in the car, Ruth.” She said with a chuckle. “I hope you boys had a safe trip.”

“We did indeed! Too bad my car doesn’t want to start. It’d have been warmer than the train.” Lance said. “Can we please get in the car now? It feels like my eyeballs are gonna freeze.”

Thirty minutes later after dropping Hunk off at home with the cakes, Lance was finally home.

“Viva! La casa!” Lance sang as he walked in the door behind his mom and sister. He dropped his luggage and opened his arms wide as the birthday boy came running down the hall, shouting his name.

“Lance!” Travis shouted, jumping into Lance’s arms. Lance picked him up and hugged him back tightly. “I missed you!!”

“I know! I missed you, too, Trav!” Lance grunted. “You need to stop growing bro. It’s getting to the point where it’s hard to pick you up!”

Travis pulled away and jutted his bottom lip, giving Lance a stink eye. “You callin’ me fat?”

Lance chuckled and shook his head. “No, I’m not calling you fat. But then again, you haven’t had much of a growth spurt yet, kiddo.”

“I know. Mom and dad say it’s because I don’t drink my milk.” Travis pouted.

“Welp,” Lance started as he made his way down the hall to the dining room. “that could be a reason why. It could also be because you won’t stop jumping off of things.” Lance put Travis down and leaned back, cracking his back. “Every time you hit the ground gravity helps make you smaller!”

“Lance, even I know that’s not why I’m not growing fast enough.”

“You sure?”

“Even I’m inclined to believe that.” Came a voice from the kitchen. Lance looked over to see his other brother Marcus, who was in the kitchen leaning on the counter as he poured some soda into a glass.

“What’s up buddy boy?!” Lance walked up to the counter and leaned over it, smiling at his brother. Marcus scrunched up his face.

“Dude, don’t call me that.”

“I’m gonna keep calling you that.”

“Lance!”

Lance laughed and rounded the counter to ruffle his brother’s hair. “I’ll keep calling you that until one of us dies.” He opened up the fridge and pulled out an orange soda. “And if I ever call you something other than buddy boy or your name, something would have to be wrong.”

“I’m doomed then.” Marcus sighed, a small smile playing on his lips.

“Yes you are.” Lance took a swig of his soda and made his way back down the hallway to grab his bag. It didn’t have much in it since it was only the weekend, but it still carried stuff for Hunk that would be needed for tomorrow.

“Hey, Lance?” Travis followed Lance back down the hallway.

“Yuuus?”

“Did Hunk come home with you?”

“He did! He just went home so he can see his family, too. They’re all coming over tomorrow anyways.” Lance made his way down the hallway and just started to climb the stairs when his grandma called at the top of the stairs. The smile on her face was so big, her cheeks lifted her glasses up. Her grey hair seemed to go in different directions as if she just got up from bed.

“Lance!” She practically shouted.

“Lita!” Lance darted up the stairs and her tightly.

“Careful with your grandma!” His dad said behind her. “She still thinks she’s young.” He chuckled. There was a soft smile behind his bushy mustache.

“Oh shush, Brett.” She said without looking at him, not letting go of her grandson.

Lance pulled away and looked down at her. She was a couple inches shorter than him. “What did you do this time?”

“Nothing!”

“She thought she could move the hardwood dining table to make room for the party tomorrow even though it doesn’t need to be moved yet.” His dad as crept his way around them and down the stairs.

“Lita, you know you’re not supposed to be doing heavy lifting!” Lance scolded.

She merely shrugged and turned around, guiding Lance down the hallway to his room. “It popped a crick in my back and it felt so good I rejoiced and your parents thought that I hurt myself.”

“He made you go lie down, though. Does your back hurt still? Should you really be up?” Lance asked.

She gave him a look over her glasses. “Are you kidding? My back felt better when I popped it, then I slept wrong and my back hurts again.” His grandma said before walking into his room. She ignored the muttered “uh huh” under Lance’s breath. “The room hasn’t changed since you last left.”

“I’d hope not!” He chuckled. Sure enough, his room hadn’t changed. Granted, he had been home a few times since he left for school, but they still kept his room as it was, only coming to dust and keep his sheets clean his mother had told him. It was nice to know there was a place for him to go even if he didn’t want to move back home.

“I’ll leave you to unpack. I think mom would like you to help her and I in the kitchen for dinner tonight, if that’s alright?” She asked at his door.

“If it means getting out of dish duty, I’m more than willing!” With a laugh from them both, his abuelita closed the door and the room then became quiet. He could still hear his siblings down the stairs running around, his parents talking about this and that, but it was quiet.

Lance always thought he was used to quiet since he lived alone, but he soon noticed that there are different types of quiet. This was with family quiet. His apartment was city quiet. It was always the dull background sound that made all the difference. When he lived in the dorms, it wasn’t always quiet, even at night when he and Hunk had finally gone to bed. You could hear the people on either side of them doing one thing or another, and if it wasn’t that, it was the party goers either in the hallway of their dorm or the party going on in the other dorm across from theirs.

When Lance moved out of there, he found that he preferred the city quiet. His neighbors were old and hard of hearing, and when they did hear him, they loved the music he made on his piano. He never once had a complaint for his piano music. To the surprise of many, he liked being on his own. As a teen, it was hard. He needed the constant noise and the upbeat feel of a room, so much so that people thought he might have ADD. But he just needed that sound. Something to drown out his problems. Now he’s grown. An adult. One who now lives on his own, struggling to find a job after his sister’s lease is up so he can take over it for her to keep living in that apartment. He preferred to be by himself. Less kids to pull him from his school work and the sounds of the city                                                                                              were almost like music.

Looking around his room, almost empty from when he moved out, but there were still little things that he didn’t bother to bring with him. It made him realize just how tightly his family held onto the thought of him coming back, but also how much they missed him. His posters of his favorite bands from his childhood, the little toy space ship he got from NASA when he was little that sat on his now empty desk, and his old and continuously sewn back together blue lion plushie he’s had for as long as he could remember was tucked up on his tall dresser with a bit of dust on it.

After a bit of unpacking, even though he was only staying until very early Monday morning, Lance headed back downstairs to see his family, running around in discourse. Despite him and his siblings getting older, they all still knew how to have fun. Even the moody Marcus, who seemed to hit his angsty teen stage the moment he turned 16, was running around and playing with his other siblings. Not even the now one year older Travis could help the fun. Ruth’s energy and bright personality didn’t help them any.

Making his way to the kitchen to help his mom and grandma, he couldn’t help but smile.

“Did something good happen while you were upstairs?” His mom teased.

“Nope. Just good to be home.”

Lance didn’t know how much he needed this.

 

\---

 

It was 7 by the time they had all finished eating. Lance helped with the dishes while his mom scooped up leftovers onto a few plates. His grandma sat at the table resting her back, wrapping some last minute presents while Travis was upstairs getting ready for bed. His dad had just left for the airport to pick up his other grandparents, along with his aunt and uncle.

“So Lance, aside from school, how is that apartment Jessa left for you?” His mom asked, handing him one of the cleared serving plates. They always assumed that he would start hating it at some point and then decide to move back.

“It’s great!” He said, crashing their kinda-hopes. “It’s close to the school, it’s quiet since most of my neighbors are old and can’t hear for shi- nothing! ...for nothing, and it’s cozy! Although, Hunk’s dad is gonna be sending me a part needed for the car. It doesn’t like to start when it’s so cold anymore.” He explained as he washed the dishes and placed them into the dishwasher. He knew where they were going with this conversation. It happened every time he visited. So he was working quickly, dragging on his conversation to be as far away from-

“And have you found any work yet?”

There it is…but this time, he could say that he does! He just doesn’t need to tell them exactly what he’s doing as long as they don’t think he’s a stripper. He knows they make amazing money and he admits that he’s got the body to do it, but he didn’t want that in his repeteur when he finally makes it big.

“I do!” He perked up in his tone. “It’s a small and temporary job that could become more permanent.”

“It’s not a secured job?” His grandma asked, sounding a little worried.

“No, but I only just got the job a few weeks ago and I’m less than 2 months away from finding out if I’m full time and permanent!”

“Only 2 months?” His mom asked slowly, skepticism dripping off every word.

This stain on the pan wasn’t coming off easily.

“You just said you got the job a few weeks ago, why is it that you’ll only know if it’s permanent in two months?” She continued, standing up straight from the dishwasher with a hand on her hip.

Wow this stain was being stubborn!

“Lance?”

“Yes?” He asked, not looking at his mom.

“You’re not stripping, are you?”

“WHAT?!” Lance promptly dropped the pan into the sudsy water.

“What’s wrong with that? He’s got the looks.”

“Lita!” Lance whipped around to his grandma, his eyes wide and mouth dropped so far down he swore it could hit China. He could not believe his ears. They just might be bleeding.

“Mom!”

“What? They make good money and I have some good looking grandkids!” She countered with a smile.

Lance chuckled and grinned, running his fingers through his short hair. “She does have a point. But no, mom, I’m not stripping. I haven’t hit that low. I’d rather work at Burger King than a strip joint.” He shrugged and went back to working on the stain on the pan. “Besides, Hunk was the one who got me the job.”

“Oh! Well, that means it’s a good job then.” His mom smiled.

“It is! And I love it! It just happened that they had a guy quit on them out of the blue and so he called me. I had the job that night. That’s why they’re giving me two months.” He wasn't lying, but he wasn’t about to tell them that he begged for the permanent spot at the LC, despite even that possibly being temporary if he didn’t prove himself being good enough.

“Are you done with that pan yet, Lance?” His mom asked, leaning on the counter. He looked down to see that the stain he’d been working on had finally come off. In fact, it was the last dish in the sink. Had they really finished this quickly? Might as well, he didn’t want this conversation to turn to other places aside from work.

Lance nodded and handed the pan to his mom with a sheepish smile. “Sorry.” He chuckled out, wiping his hands on the dish cloth

“Go head to bed, it’s an early morning tomorrow.” His grandma told him as she stood up, and stretched. “We old ladies have this.”

Lance laughed as he made his way out of the kitchen and up the stairs, overhearing his mom ask her mother what she meant by old. It seemed rude, but you could hear the smiles in their voices.

Their voices faded as Lance turned the corner to his room. The door next to his was closed, but he could see a small bit of light coming out from the crack under it. Travis was still up. Lance, being the sneaky one he is, slowly and quietly opened the door and scared his poor little brother. He was sitting at his desk, working on something at his desk.

“You know, you should be asleep. I know you don’t have to wake up as early as the rest of us until just before the party, but sleep is important my dude.” Lance made his way across the room as Travis quickly whipped his head around to look at him, bringing it back around to hide away whatever it was he was working on. “Unless you’re planning on sneaking out of the room to go find your presents?” Lance teased as he walked up and rested his arm on his brother’s head.

“It’s not that…” Travis said, brushing the long and heavy limb off him. “I already tried to find them, they hide them in different spots every year, you know that.” He pouted.

“Never stopped me from trying.” Lance said proudly. “If present hunting isn’t your reason, then what has you staying up so late? Working on something?”

“No.” Travis said quickly.

“Then…?” Lance drug out, leaning over his brother to look around his desk. He knows he saw him hide something, but he didn’t know what to look for exactly.

After a short moment and a bit of prodding from Lance’s bony fingers, Travis gave in. “I know my birthday party is tomorrow, but there’s something I want to give someone. And since they’ll be there tomorrow….I thought I might as well give it to them sooner rather than later…” Travis spoke hesitantly, worried that Lance might say something that would make fun of him. Maybe even tell him he shouldn’t have to give someone else something on a day meant to celebrate Travis.

“You do? Gotta crush on someone, bro?” Lance said casually. “What is it that you want to give them and I’ll help ya out.”

Travis slowly turned around in his seat and looked up at Lance. “Don’t laugh at me, okay?”

“Of course not! Why would you think I’d laugh at you?” Lance asked, leaning against the desk.

His brother fidgeted and grabbed a small spiral book. A sketchbook to be precise. When did he pick up drawing?

“I really like someone and they really like art...so I started drawing with them during art class and recess…” Travis opened up his book and showed pictures of flowers. As his brother turned the pages, looking for the right page, Lance seen the different flowers and the scratched out tries, some colored and some not.

“You drew all of these?” Lance chuckled out with a smile, reaching out and making his brother stop on a random page.

“You said you wouldn’t laugh!” Travis whined out, a sad and hurt look struck Lance in the gut.

Lance shook his head, his smile widening. “I’m not laughing at you, Trav. I’m amazed at these! They’re really good!”

Travis looked at him with a bit of hesitation. “You’re just saying that…”

“No, seriously, dude. Kids your age don’t usually draw this well.  _ I _ can’t even draw daisy.” Lance chuckled at his own jab.

That made his little brother laugh as well, which made Lance smile soften. “Really?”

“Really! Now, what is it you want to give them and who is this ‘them’?” Lance asked with a teasing side look.

Travis moved Lance’s hand out of the way and flipped to the very last picture in his sketchbook. It was a group of pink roses. The color wasn’t too light, but it wasn’t too dark either. It was perfectly shaded as if he had them right there in front of him. Some closed, some were fully bloomed, all surrounded by their green leaves on a stark white page.

“This is amazing, Trav.” He awed. “Who is it you want to give this to, again”

“Just...someone.” Travis blushed as he looked at the picture. Lance couldn’t help but chuckle again, but this time silently. He can remember getting crushes even at Travis’ age. It was cute to see his own little brother crush on someone. He didn’t get to see that with Marcus. The kid was always quiet when people who weren’t family were around. He was still like that, but was even a little quiet around the family now. It’s probably just a phase he’s going through right now.

“Well, you need to be heading off to bed. We all have to get up early in the morning to get ready for your party. You don’t want to look like the walking dead from not sleeping, do ya?” Lance teased as he stood up and made his way to the door. Lance knew could tell Travis wasn’t comfortable telling him who he liked, so he left it as it is. He knew what it was like to keep something like a crush to oneself.

Travis laughed, dimples forming and his last baby tooth just growing back. “Night Lance!”

Lance waved back at his brother before he made his way to his room.

Things were certainly different from the last time he visited.

 

\---

 

“HUNK!!!”

Lance, who had just gotten up and dressed had just taken his first sip of coffee. It was rare that he drank coffee, but he certainly would need the stuff for today. And it was, like, 7:30 in the morning with a house soon to be filled with kids. Who didn’t need that cup of joe? What he didn’t need today was the doorbell sounding like a large bell being rung right next to his ear and Travis and Ruth screaming his best friend’s name when they opened the door.

His mom left the kitchen and met Hunk and the two younger ones in the hallway, telling him that he had full use of the kitchen so he could finish Travis’ cake, if he didn’t mind sharing it with her and her mother-in-law.

“Of course not! I’ll help you out when I’m done anyways.” Hunk said with a smile, setting his bag and the containers with the cakes in them down on the open counter bar. Lance had no idea how he could be so cheery so early in the morning. Normally Hunk looked like he had just gotten out of bed when they meet up at school.

“Mornin’ Hunky man.” Lance croaked out, taking another sip of his coffee. Unlike the rest of his family, he wasn’t the biggest fan of coffee. Too bitter, not enough variety in his favorite flavors, not even making the cup mostly milk like how his younger siblings drank it would make it taste any better. Coffee only became his drink of choice when he knew he would be in desperate need for caffeine.

“Morning! Didn’t sleep well?” He asked as he began to unpack everything out of his bag.

“Since I moved to the city and got used to the noise outside my window, no, not really!” Lance mused as he walked out of the kitchen to sit at the counter bar across from his best friend. His voice said he was cheery awake, but his drooping face and dark circles said otherwise. “It’s weird how quiet it is here at night.”

Hunk chuckled as he got out a piping bag just as a scream came from upstairs, followed by childish laughter. Lance groaned and took another drink of coffee as his friend chuckled. “It’s never quiet during the day, though!”

“It’s what was my morning wake up call.” Lance muttered into his mug.

“I always wanted siblings growing up.” Hunk said as he put icing in the bag and tied the top with a rubber band. “I got that made up for though when you moved in.”

Lance half glared over his coffee. He didn’t know if he should be proud or offended by the comment.

“You’ll always be family to us, Hunk.” Lance’s mom said as she walked around him, having just come back from checking what happened upstairs. Hunk smiled and thanked her.

“Does that make you my second mom?” He joked.

“Sure! I have 5 kids already.” She said moving some food from pans to large dishes. “I’ve adopted almost all of my other kid’s friends, what are a few more?” She chuckled, walking back around him to the dining table just behind Lance.

“Your amazing Mrs. McClain!” Hunk fawned, as she readjusted the table settings.

“I’m even more amazing because I’m making margaritas for the non-driving adults.” She smiled slyly.

“Mom, you are a lifesaver.” Lance hummed with a smile as he took a bigger drink of his coffee. It finally cooled down enough to gulp down.

A loud booping sound rang out next to Lance. The iPad of theirs was showing a video skype call from his sister Jess. This made him awake. “TRAVIS!” He called out as he hurried and answered the call. “Hey, Jess!”

“Lanny!” Jessa said excitedly. “I haven’t seen you in so long! I mean, outside of Facebook of course!” She chuckled. “Where is the birthday boy?”

“He’s right here!” Travis yelled as he ran up the short stairs from the living room. He jumped onto the stool and waved at his sister. “Hi Jessa!”

“Heya, Travy! Happy birthday!” She said excitedly.

“Thank you! When are you coming home?” He asked, giving her the stink eye. Everyone around the iPad laughed at his adorable look, even Jess.

“I’m not coming home yet, but I did send a birthday present!” She said in a sing-song tone.

“You did? When is it coming?” He demanded, clearly excited.

“It came a few days ago, but you don’t get to open it until later.” Their mom told him. Travis puffed his cheeks and grumbled out a fine.

“I just wanted to make a quick call and say hi to everyone while I had the time. I’m at the end of my break from work. I’m glad I was able to catch, at least...most of you.” Jessa chuckled. “Where is everyone else?”

“Your dad is shoveling the driveway, Marcus is putting up decorations in the front room and Ruth has probably made her way upstairs to wake up your grandma, aunt, uncle and cousins.” Their mom queued off.

“I’ll catch them next time.” Jessa shrugged. “Enjoy the day Travy! Bye guys! I love you!”

With a harmony of goodbyes, the call ended and everyone dispersed to do their duty. Lance finished off his coffee faster than he would have liked and started moving things around, decorating and helping out with placing out the food. Hunk, after finishing the cake, joined in the helping. By the time they were all done, seeing as they were a cavalry themselves with how Lance’s mother taught them to be organized during large events since childhood, it was done by the time their grandma was finally down stairs. And when the last balloon was filled, the doorbell rang.

Tons of kids from Travis’ school poured in and family who came into town just for Travis. Lance mingled with different people around the house, watched as people played games, ate some food he didn’t know he was missing - he really needed to get that empanada recipe from Lita or mom - and gathered around in the living room to watch his brother open up presents.

In their house, the birthday kid got to pick who would help pass you the presents as you opened them. Travis picked a friend from school. The kid had short red hair that seemed to be gelled, his pale face was lightly decorated with freckles that went across his nose and cheeks. Lance admitted that he was the most adorable ginger kid he’d ever seen. Pidge had nothing on this kid. You could barely tell she had freckles unless you actually got up in her face. As the presents were passed, Lance noticed the cute little glances Travis and the mystery ginger shared. They were subtle, but Lance could see them.

After presents, Travis and the mystery ginger vanished, leaving some time between now and the cutting and blowing of the cake. Lance walked into the kitchen where his mom stood in front of a blender that whirled away a mix of ice and different liquids. This must be the margaritas she was talking about earlier.

“A little early, mom?” Lance asked as he leaned onto the counter.

“I’m about to serve a ton of sugar to a bunch of kids and two of them will be staying here. So no, it’s not.” She said as she stopped the blender, bringing out some glasses that could easily be distinguished from the cups the kids were using and filling them up. “The first kid walked into my house at 10 and it’s already 12:30. They’ll be here longer because someone decided to have a few friends sleep over, too.”

“You haven’t started drinking yet, have you?” Lance asked, concerned with the amount she was making so early.

“No! These are for the other parents. I won’t start drinking until this mess has been cleaned up. And besides…” She turned to her son and grinned. “It’s 5 somewhere, right?”

He chuckled and shrugged. “This is true!”

“And since it’s 5 o’clock somewhere….!” An elderly voice came from behind them. “I’ll take one of those!”

“Lita, I think we established-” Lance began teasingly.

“Oh shush. I’m old and I don’t work. I’m having a drink.” She smiled and grabbed a drink. “Have you two seen Travis anywhere?” She asked after a sip and a quick glance around.

“I think he went to go show something to Adam.” His mom said as she kept pouring some glasses full of the blended drink.

“Adam? Is that the name of Travis’ ginger dream boat?” Lance blurted out.

“You saw that, too?” His mom said with a wide smile.

“To be young,” His grandma sighed, sitting down at the counter bar. “I can remember when you had your first crush.”

“I can, too!” His mom smiled.

“Oh god, please, no-”

“What was her name again, Samara?”

“Inna Farish!” His mother started. “Black hair, green eyes - she was so pale for a Floridian you’d have thought she was a porcelain doll!”

“She was as cute as one, too.” His grandma added. “If we had stayed in touch with her, I might have some good looking great grandkids right about now.”

Lance sighed and shrugged. “Don’t know what to tell ya! Besides, she liked Bryan Marinos the entire time I knew her.”

“Sorry to eavesdrop,” Lance’s dad said as he came up to the counter bar. “but I am wondering if you’ve finally met someone at school?”

“Nope and you know what,” Lance said quickly with a nervous laugh. “I haven’t seen aunt Rita all day! I mean, some nephew I am, huh?” He tried to make his way out of the kitchen only for this mom and grandma to give him  _ the look. _ The look that told him he wasn’t getting out of it because of his own actions. Lance sighed and leaned against the counter. “Okay, no, I haven’t. I thought I had, a while ago, but I was wrong about that.” He didn’t want to talk about this.

“Why is that?” His dad asked.

“Just some things happened.”

He really didn’t want to talk about this.

His parents and grandma must have seen the pain in his face, the distant look in his eyes, how uncomfortable he was talking about this subject.

For Lance, memories of a drunken party and a stupid boy making a stupid decision that ended in heartache on his end.

“Hey Mrs. McClain?” A voice came from behind the small group, snapping them out of their small and rather gloomy atmosphere. Looking up they seen Hunk, who was holding a rather tired looking Ruth, seemingly already passed out if it weren’t for the squint in her eyes as she tried to keep herself awake. “I tried putting her down myself, but she keeps telling me she’s not tired.” Hunk chuckled.

“I’ll put her down then.” Lance’s dad said, reaching out to take his daughter from the young man. They all laughed however when she clung to Hunk more, claiming she didn’t want to go to sleep unless Hunk was with her. She compared him to a teddy bear since her’s recently had to ‘go back to the wild’ a few weeks ago.

Hunk and Lance’s dad headed upstairs to put the young one to sleep and possibly pry her off his best friend. His grandma stood and walked over to her other daughter and son-in-law to chat, leaving Lance and his mom alone as possible in the kitchen. His mom turned to him and put a hand on his shoulder.

“Lance, I know some things happened in your freshman year of college, but you can always talk to us about it, alright?” She reassured him. She seemed to be doing that a lot lately, even over the phone.

“I know. But I have a lot on my plate right now, including school.”

“I don’t think it’s just that.” She said. She moved in closer and lowered her voice. “Hunk told me you ran into a friend that you don’t get along with and some...things, altercations, whatever they may be, happened this week.”

“Oh? And he told you this when?” He asked, eyeing the stairs for a moment.

“After he finished with Travis’ cake, he was helping me assort some of the food and we got to talking.” She frowned at him a little. “You don’t talk about what goes on outside of school unless it involves Hunk and that friend you two made at the beginning of the year, so I’m just worried.”

“You don’t need to be, mama.” Lance said with a reassuring smile. “Besides, this week has been busy, even for the person who happens to be the cause of this, so this issue hasn’t been resolved yet.”

“And that will be when? Honey, I don’t want a repeat of last-”

“Mama, there won’t be, I promise.” Lance half smiled. 

She sighed and gave him a soft smile, brushing her hand against his cheek until it moved into his hair, where she then ruffled it a bit. “I know. I worry about you, though.” She smoothed back the hair she messed up fondly.

“It’s just a stupid little thing that we made out to be bigger than it should have. Annnd…” He cringed. “I haven’t had the chance to apologize myself. But I will say it.” His mom opened her mouth to say something, but Lance beat her to it when he lifted his finger. “And we will talk about it! I know, mama.” He chuckled lightly.

“That’s my baby.” She patted his cheek and moved with a tired huff. “Even out of the house I’m taking care of my babies.” She laughed and walked out of the kitchen with the tray of drinks. He chuckled with her as he watched and stayed behind, leaning his elbows on the counter bar.

He didn’t quite watch the people and kids that walked and ran around. It was a zoo, that was for sure, but it wasn’t the first time he’s seen their parties get loud and wild. So when his mind began to wonder, it wasn’t hard for him to block it all out.

Lance started to think about the past week since he had ran into Keith. He had honestly been avoiding the thought of him while he’d been home. A week had passed and neither he nor Keith had said a word to each other. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to talk to him about it - which was a lie; he really didn’t want to talk to him about the whole thing - but they were going to be seeing each other every Friday for now and possibly longer. They needed to get along at least enough to apologize to each other.

It suddenly hit him that Keith had apologized, but Lance hadn’t. He had every chance and he didn’t do it. Sure, he didn’t have Keith’s phone number, I mean they did just reunite last week, but he still could have gotten it from Pidge. Maybe even asked for his exact address from Hunk since he seemed to know Keith lived in the building next to his. He even had his chances this past Friday to talk to him during his break.

Then again, maybe Keith was upset that he didn’t apologize back right away? What if he fucked up already? What if he fucked up even more than he realized? Lance groaned and ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. He could admit his faults, even that sometimes he could be an ass when he didn’t mean to, but outwardly admitting it sometimes wasn’t something he was good at. He didn’t know if even apologizing would make it worse or not. He had his fair share of mishaps with the attempts of actual sincerity that weren’t taken seriously, so of course apologizing was hard!

Lance realized that Keith had confessed his mistake, knowing just how hard it had been. Obviously he had thought about it within the hours that the two of them had their small debacle. Lance had just gone home and fumed for a good few hours and calmed himself with some piano music. He could really use his piano right now, now that he thought about it.

Hunk came down and brought Lance out his thoughts with a hand coming down heavily on his shoulder. “You alright, buddy?”

“Yeah. I’m just thinking is all. I guess you told my mom about what happened at Lion’s Castle.” Lance said as he straightened up.

“I didn’t know I wasn’t supposed to talk about it. But it did just slip out.” He shrugged. “You gotta talk to them more often.”

“Says you who doesn’t call except once a week.” Lance scoffed.

“At least it’s once a week to your once a month or so.” Hunk sighed when Lance didn’t say anything right away. He didn’t even try to defend himself. “Listen Lance, I know things have been tough with you and your family since high school, but you gotta let the past be the past. It’ll eat at you.”

“I’m not letting anything eat at me, Hunk. But I get your point…” Lance stretched just as Travis and Adam came running out of the front room with big smiles and pink dusted cheeks as they laughed into the living room. He smiled as he watched his brother run around with his friend, getting the other kids involved with their fun. “I do still need time, though. I know it’s been a while, but I just need time. They may have moved past it all completely, but I haven’t.”

“But you’ll still call?” Hunk asked with a side glance. “I’ll bug the hell out of you every day until you make it routine!”

Lance laughed, his mood brighter now. “I know you will, Hunk. I expect nothing less!”

A sudden roar for cake came from the living room. Lance and Hunk looked over to the blender and with the bottles sitting on a ledge high enough away from sticky fingers. A drink was sounding good about now.

 

\---

 

Chaos. Complete and utter chaos had ensued and the somewhat messy house was now a disaster. Thankfully, the party had been moved to the outside where they started a snowball fight. The sugar from the cake Hunk had made created hyper monsters that made kids act like they weren’t close to going into middle school yet. By the time the party ended, the kids were so tired they could easily be mistaken for the walking dead. There was a moment after the last kid who wasn’t staying the night left where it was quiet. Hunk had stayed around while his parents went home for the day, volunteering to help with the clean up since it was his food that caused the horror that is a sugar rush - his words, in fact. Not to mention he helped lead the kids into song when Lance got out his dad’s guitar to sing happy birthday

Travis, Ruth, Adam, and a few of his friends from school were upstairs in his room playing one of the new video games he got as a present while the family stayed downstairs, vegging on the couch to recover. After some chatting, they proceeded to clean up a bit. Soon after, Hunk went home for some rest and to pack for their trip back to their apartments.

Lance made his way out of his room just as Travis walked out of the hallway bathroom. Travis looked happier than he was earlier. With a sly grin, Lance crossed his arms and leaned against the wall opposite of the bathroom.

“So, the mysterious crush’s name is Adam, huh?” Lance teased lightly.

Travis jumped and looked at his brother with a deer in the headlights look, a bright blush cover more than half of his face. “Y-Yeah.” He replied after a moment of opening and closing his mouth like a fish out of water.

“So? Did he like the picture you drew him?” Lance asked.

His blush got brighter, if possible, and he gave the goofiest, most adorable smile Lance had ever seen on him as he looked the floor shyly. “He did, actually.”

“And did you ask him out?” Lance pressed lightly, leaning forward with a wiggle of his thin eyebrows. “Does my little brother have a boyfriend already~?”

“I-I think so?” Travis stuttered and rubbed the back of his head, his eyes still never leaving the floor. “He hugged me really tightly and even…” His blush completely covered his face and neck. He looked like a cherry tomato. “...k-k-...kissed my cheek…”

“Awwww! Trav!” Lance cooed, darting forward and gave him a bear hug. “My little brother is growing up!” Travis groaned in protest to the hug, but took it nonetheless. When Lance let him go, they couldn’t help but smile and giggle. “Seeing as you have guests staying the night, you won’t be able to head to the train station with Hunk and I.”

Travis nodded hesitantly. “Yeah...if I had known you guys would be heading back so soon I wouldn’t have-”

“Nah,” Lance chimed as he leaned down and ruffled his brother’s hair. “Don’t sweat it. It’s your b-day, you shouldn’t have to rearrange plans just for something as simple as me leaving.” Lance shrugged. “Not like you won’t be seeing me again!”

‘If it wasn’t for the fact of school, I would stay the whole week...’ Lance thought.

His brother smiled and nodded. “Thanks for coming Lance.”

“Of course, little man. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” He smiled. Travis now initiated the hug. It was long, tight, loving...Lance always missed these hugs from his family. “You need to get back to your friends. You’re party hasn’t actually ended until they go home in the morning.”

Travis smiled and nodded, wishing him a goodnight before scurrying off to his room. Lance kept his eyes on his brother’s door before turning back to his own room. His little brother was becoming not so little even more. Even Marcus was starting to get up there in height with Lance. He knew time was flying by when it came to his family, he just didn’t realize just how fast until now.

By the time 4 AM came around, Lance had only gotten a few hours of sleep. Knowing Hunk, he not only had an easy time falling asleep, he was dead asleep by the time he got home. With his things packed, and a few other little knick knacks, he was ready to brave the cold to the train station with Hunk. Seeing as his mom was up so early yesterday morning and it was her who picked them up, his dad decided to be the one to drop Hunk and him off.

Downstairs, his dad was in his work clothes fixing a thermos of coffee and Marcus was dressed and eating breakfast at the table.

“Are you coming with us to drop me off? That’s so sweet of you Marc!” Lance cooed, his voice scratchy from having been up for the most of 15 minutes.

Marcus looked up from his cereal with a deadpan expression. “No, actually, I’m driving to school.”

“I thought you only had your permit?” Lance said as he took a seat across from his brother.

“He got his license a few weeks ago.” His dad said with pride.

“Nice! They still had a spot for school parking?” Lance asked.

“No, they’re making me park across the street at the convenience store.” Marcus said sarcastically. Lance muttered ‘smart ass’ under his breath and Marcus tossed a piece of cereal at his face.

“What, are we 5 now?” Lance chuckled lightly.

“Marcus, eat and don’t act like a 5 year old.” Their dad warned as he put on his coat. Marcus glared at Lance while the former stuck his tongue out. “You’re in your 20’s Lance, don’t stick your tongue out at your brother.”

He shrugged and stood, ruffling Marcus’ hair before walking down the hallway after his dad. “That look is way too sour for you, bro. But don’t worry!” He put on his coat just as their dad was walking out the door to the car. “You’ll get laid at some point. Then you won’t look like a lime all the time!”

A choking sound followed by coughing came from the kitchen just as Lance walked out the door.

He was rather proud of himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This certainly makes up for the shortness of the last chapter and hopefully this also makes up for the lateness of this. Now, I wanted to put a song in this chapter, but I don’t know if the traditional “Happy Birthday” song actually counts...
> 
> If you’re wondering, “lita” is a shorter version of abuelita. Yes, it is a thing you can call grandmas. Lance’s grandma also has a Spanish accent, but it’s not very strong, and his mom has a very light accent.
> 
> Also, I know that most but not all Cuban families have a love for coffee/espresso, but I’m basing this off the mind melding moment where we see Lance’s family who look of mixed race.
> 
> This chapter’s drink: Margarita Madres ( blended ) –
> 
> 1 ½ oz ( 45 ml ) Jose Cuervo Gold  
> ½ oz ( 15 ml ) sweet & sour  
> 1 ½ oz ( 45 ml ) orange juice  
> 1 ½ oz ( 45 ml ) cranberry juice
> 
> Pour ingredients into a blender with crushed ice. Blend well and serve in a margarita glass. ( Optional ) For presentation, before pouring drink, take a lime wedge and rim the glass, dip in coarse salt and stick on a lime wedge to the edge of the glass.


	5. Root Beer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was just supposed to be a nice late dinner with his brother…!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this was a fun chapter to write! I seriously hope you guys like this chapter as much as I do! That’s all I’m gonna say because if I keep going, imma spoil the chapter.
> 
> Enjoy!!!

**Chapter Five: Root Beer**

 

If there is anything Keith is regretting right now, it’s his choice of clothes. He had accidentally grabbed a pair of thin black skinny jeans and a thin dark grey shirt under his red leather jacket. Today had a little rain, adding to the cold that was winter in the city. Now that it was nighttime, it was colder, especially with the added humidity in the air. So for Keith, it felt like his legs were turning into icicles and about to fall off. Those weren’t the only things on his lower half that he felt freezing.

Shiro had called and asked to have a late dinner with him. This was his day off and he would have spent it all by himself if not for Shiro. Of course, they didn’t have time to sit and talk with each other as often as they use to outside of the lounge. After almost a month of no quality time together, Keith stood in front of a small but popular pizza joint that had been here since what looked like the beginning of time to actually talk with his brother. Some of the pizzas had their names changed to be more fun with the times, which was weird in Keith’s opinion, but the pizza was good nonetheless. Just as he was about to walk in, his brother popped up behind him and scared the hell out of him.

“Dammit Shiro!” Keith shouted after nearly slipping on a small patch of ice on the sidewalk. Shiro laughed and helped to steady him. “What are you, 5?!”

“No, but you seem uptight.” He chuckled as he opened the door to the restaurant. Keith walked in behind his brother and let out a sigh of relief at the immediate temperature difference.

“It’s cold, of course I seem uptight.” Keith said with a shiver, taking off his coat.

The entrance was crowded, but it wasn’t enough to feel like you could suffocate in a sea of people.

“Did you get all of-?” Shiro asked as they waited in line to put there name on the waitlist for a table.

“No, not yet.” Keith sighed with a pout, interrupting his brother. “I’m not used to training people, so this has me a bit overwhelmed.”

“You’re just training Matt, what’s there to be overwhelmed about?”

“The inflation of customers, that’s what.” He huffed. “You only work there Friday nights as the finale, so the crowd dies down, but thanks to the ads Allura put out we’ve gotten more busy outside of mic-night.”

“Does that mean I’ll get more popular with the crowd?”

“Yes, it-” Keith stopped mid sentence and whipped around and saw a familiar trio standing there. Lance happened to be leaning forward with a shit eating grin plastered on his face while Hunk stood there and waved with a kind smile of his own. It was Lance who had said that.

“Hi Keith!” Pidge said with a bright smile. “Been a while!”

Keith just nodded and stared. He didn’t think he’s be running into them outside of work - especially Lance. He hadn’t seen him since Friday night, and even then Keith was too busy training Matt to actually talk to him.

“Pidge, we just saw each other last Friday.” Shiro said with a chuckle.

“But that was, like, forever ago.” She waved off. “And it was only for a few minutes before I had to leave and you went on stage! I don’t count that as visiting.”

“We can always visit each other right now?” He suggested with a smile and a shrug. “How about it? Why don’t we get a table and eat together?”

Before Keith could protest, the trio all hailed a yes, outnumbering Keith 4 to 1. Shiro just looked at him knowing that he’d lost and anything he would say could and would be used against him. Something Shiro claimed to be in the brother’s handbook as well.

Keith would _love_ to see this so called ‘brother’s handbook’.

“How long have you guys been waiting?” Hunk asked.

“We still need to get out name on the waitlist.” Keith said for Shiro.

“I’ve got you covered!” And Hunk made his way to the counter to adjust their number of guests.

“Did you get off of work?” Pidge asked Shiro.

“I did, about 20 minutes ago in fact. I do have a question though,” Shiro started and turned to Lance. “I haven’t caught your name yet.”

Lance straightened up quickly. “Oh! Right, I’m-”

“Oh! Lance, right?” Shiro interrupted with realization. He gave Keith a knowing glance, who happened to have a light blush on his cheeks. Keith could blame it on the cold all he wants, but Shiro knows his brother better than that. “I’m Shiro. It’s nice to finally meet El León con Encanto.” He extended his hand out to Lance for a handshake.

Lance smiled so wide it took up half of his face and nodded, reaching out to shake his hand. What he didn’t expect was Shiro’s hand to be ungloved, showing a metal and black rubber replacing flesh. Lance looked at the hand and up to Shiro, who stood there with an unwavering smile. After a beat, Lance smile was back and gave him a firm handshake.

“You know me?” Lance felt his heart racing. Shiro knew who he was! His idol knew who he was!

“Yeah, seems we’re both going to be performing at the Lion’s Castle.” Shiro chuckled as they pulled away. “Keith told me you guys ran into each other on your first night - literally.”

“Then it’s especially nice to finally meet you, Shiro.” Lance said, a little embarrassed.

“Finally meet me?” Shiro asked, a surprised look was added, but the smile stayed put.

“Guys!” Hunk called out, earning their attention. “Our table is ready!”

“I’m guessing that includes us?” Keith asked.

“You betcha!” Pidge said enthusiastically, grabbing both Shiro’s and Keith’s hands and dragging them off to their table.

Shiro and Keith sat side by side, Lance across from Keith - thanks to Shiro making sure to sit across from Hunk - and Pidge at the end of the table closest to the old wood paneled wall between Hunk and Shiro. With drinks ordered, Shiro turned to Lance as they looked at the menu.

“So Lance, what did you mean by ‘Finally get to meet you’?”

“Oh! Uh, this’ll sound weird, but when I was in high school and was looking for a school to go to, when we went to GU, you were doing a performance with the school orchestra.” Lance smiled fondly. “I don’t know the names of the songs you guys played, but they were amazing.”

Shiro smiled and chuckled, his eyes a bit distant, remembering the performance just as fondly. “I remember that...!”

Keith glanced between Lance and Shiro with some confusion, but kept his mouth shut.

“And you played beautifully!” Lance exclaimed. “I play a lot of piano, so seeing you play with the orchestra was like a calling!”

“A calling, huh?” Shiro chuckled.

“Yeah, kinda! I knew that if I wanted to play as well as you, GU’s music program was perfect for me!” Lance said excitedly. “I didn’t know what school to go to, what I was gonna study, let alone if I was even gonna go to college.”

“It really resonated with you, then, huh?” Shiro stated, his understanding was underlined with fondness.

“Yeah.” Lance breathed out.

“Would you guys like us to get another table so you can have some alone time?” Pidge teased.

“Don’t ruin my fanboy moment, Pidgeot.” She shrugged it off and went back to her menu muttering, “If you say so.”

“By the way, why did you stop going to school?” Lance asked.

The whole table went still at the mention of Shiro and school. Everyone but Shiro and Lance kept their eyes on their menus. Hunk and Pidge acted as if it wasn’t said, Keith, however, looked like he was about to burst with anger.

Lance glanced around the table until his eyes came back to Shiro. “Did….I say something wrong?” He asked hesitantly.

Shiro opened and closed his mouth before giving a bit of a strained smile. He opened his mouth to finally say something, only for Keith to beat him to it.

“Yeah, you did. And we don’t talk about it. Ever.” Keith snapped, trying to keep his cool as best as possible. He didn’t bother looking up at Shiro or Lance. If he did, he’d certainly lose it. “It’s none of your business anyways, so stay out of it.” Maybe his anger was getting to him more than he thought. Shiro’s famous motto was getting hard to repeat in his head.

“Keith-” Shiro started, his attention now on his brother.

“He shouldn’t be prying into things!” Keith argued, gripping his menu tighter. He couldn’t see the words on the menu anymore.

“Hey, all I did was ask a question! I didn’t know it was something you don’t talk about! On top of that, Shiro can speak for himself.” Lance huffed and crossed his arms, sliding down into his chair. That apology he decided to give Keith after the weekend with his parents? Nope. Wasn’t gonna happen.

The waitress then came up with a big smile, balancing a tray with their drinks. “Are you all ready to order?” She a bit slowly, seeming to have felt the strained atmosphere.

“Yes.” They said in unison.

At first, no one would speak up, almost afraid if they say something, it’ll bring more conflict. Shiro glanced about the table before looking up at the waitress with a smile as he handed her his menu, his voice cheery. “Small margherita pizza, please.”

“Medium sized mighty meaty pizza with extra pepperoni and cheese, please!” Pidge followed with a large smile.

“Why a medium?” Hunk asked.

“I have a project due this week. Late night working leads to late night snacking! It’s good even warmed over.” She explained proudly.

Hunk chuckled. “If you say so.” He turned back to the waitress. “I’ll have the veggie explosion.”

“Lame.” She chimed.

“Hey, they do it right here!”

Everyone chuckled, the tension having been lifted just a little bit. When the waitress turned to Lance, he held out his menu and leaned on the table with his elbow, turning on the charm. “And I’ll have the small Hawaiian pizza.” And Lance curtly winked. While Hunk and Pidge groaned at Lance’s weak attempt at flirting - was it even flirting? - and Shiro shaking his head with how incredibly lame his attempt was, Keith looked at Lance with a bit of shock.

“You like pineapple on pizza?”

Lance slid his eyes over to Keith, glaring at him for judging. “Uh, yeah? Despite what people think, pineapple on pizza is amazing. Got a problem with that?”

“Actually, I don’t.” Keith retorted, earning a surprised look from the Latino man across from him. “Is pineapple on pizza really that weird?”

“Yes.” Hunk, Pidge and Shiro agreed in unison. Keith looked up at the waitress as if she was a pizza expert, but she hesitantly nodded, agreeing with the other three.

“...oh.” Keith said a little quietly as he felt himself shrink in his seat, staring at the rest of the group. He really didn’t know that.

Lance scoffed, earning Keith’s attention again. “Don’t listen to them! They’re seriously missing out.” Lance was incredibly confident in his answer, despite everyone else shaking their heads.

Keith stared at Lance in thought for a moment before giving a bit of a shrug. “Why don’t we split a pizza then?”

“Us? Split one?” That certainly surprised Lance and, apparently the rest of the group as well.

“Well...yeah. Your half can be Hawaiian and the other half can be mine. It’d also save us both some money.” The table was quiet for a moment, enough to make Keith begin to think that he was now the one who said something wrong, not that he knew what that was. “It has to have a gluten free crust, though.”

“...Alright.” Lance said with a nod, turning back to the waitress. This once again surprised everyone at the table. “A medium pizza that’s half Hawaiian, and…?”

Keith handed her his menu. “Pineapple, mushroom, bell pepper and onion.” She nodded as she jotted down their orders and walked away. When his attention once again landed on Lance, his eyebrow rose. “What? I thought you said there was nothing wrong with pineapple on pizza?”

“There isn’t, but that is the most oddly specific and weirdest combination on a pizza I have ever heard of.”

“So is putting Canadian bacon on pizza when it’s actually ham and not bacon.” Keith stated, taking a drink of his soda.

“First, Rude!” Lance gasped. “Second, ham or not, it is amazing on pizza! It compliments the pineapple!”

“No, it doesn’t.”

“Lance-”

“Keith-”

“Nuh-uh-uh-uh-uh.” Pidge tutted and leaned over, covering both Shiro and Hunk’s mouths. “I wanna see where this goes.”

“Yes, it does! If you don’t have the salty, smoky, meaty goodness with the pineapple, you ruin the pizza! It gets too sweet!” Lance rebundled.

“The cheese is salty enough! And the mushrooms have a meatiness to them that easily replaces that.” Keith huffed. “Not to mention onion can be spicy! It’s better than just having ham that’s not even bacon.”

Lance looked absolutely shocked and even more insulted than he already felt. Keith just stared at him, knowing that his opinion was an unwavering one. Not a thing Lance could say would change his mind.

“I can’t believe they had a fight over pizza toppings….” Hunk said quietly as he stared at their two friends.

“I can’t believe they have something in common.” Pidge said, just a little louder.

“You mean aside from music?” Shiro asked. Pidge and Hunk nodded. “Looks like my little brother is finally making a friend after over a year.” Shiro chuckled as he slapped Keith on the back with his metal arm. It was hard enough to knock him forward a bit.

For Lance, his life could very well be a movie, as in his head he swore he heard a record scratch.

“I’m sorry, your what now?”

“Brother.” Hunk confirmed. He looked at his best friend and gestured to Shiro and Keith as Lance stared at him, still confused, as if he had heard him wrong as well. “Keith is Shiro’s younger brother.”

Mouth agape, Lance looked back and forth between Shiro and Keith. “Hunk, my man, don’t you be lying to me!”

“He’s not.” Pidge said, taking a swig of her soda. “I told you my brother and I grew up with them. Did you really not know that Keith was his brother?”

“No!”

“Dude, everyone in school talked about how they were brothers! Even our professors! All the time! Especially after-” Hunk quickly stopped and hesitated, glancing at Shiro and Keith. Keith shifted in his seat so that his arms were closed, looking off somewhere else. Shiro sat there and shrugged, giving Hunk an understanding smile. “...Especially after Shiro had disappeared.”

“How did I miss this?!” Lance exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air.

“I don’t know! I’m surprised you didn’t after all the parties you went to Freshman and Sophomore year.”

“I didn’t go to all of them, Hunk.” Lance defended, throwing a quick glance towards Keith, who was still looking off to somewhere that seemed so much more interesting. It ticked Lance off. “I only went to some of the big ones on campus and the ones in my dorm Freshman year.”

“That’s still a lot.” Pidge said after a sip of her drink.

“Doesn’t matter how many parties I’ve gone to! What _actually_ matters is that you two hid this from me! _And_ how did _you_ meet Shiro?!”

“Outside of the LC? He was helping at the school orientation as my group leader to show us around campus.” Hunk shrugged. “I thought I told you that?”

“Uh, I think I’d remember if you told me you met him!” Lance argued.

“It was a surprise to meet him again after orientation when he came to that last frat house party I went to.” Shiro lamented with a chuckle.

“Yeah, that was my first college party.” Hunk admitted. “Lance dragged me away from my homework because I was getting too stressed.”

“It was Keith’s too!” Shiro smiled and smacked Keith’s shoulder with the back of his metal hand. He let out another grunt and glared at his brother. If he woke up with bruises in the morning, he’ll sick their parents on him.

Keith looked over at Lance who sat there in shock and a bit of horror. It might have been Keith’s imagination as the look of horror suddenly passed in a split second and was now making an overly dramatic offended look, his hand over his heart as he did so.

“Still, I really was surprised to see you there so soon after orientation. Okay, maybe 5 months is pushing it a little when it comes to ‘too soon’, but it certainly felt like it. Usually freshman tend to avoid the parties until after they’ve settled into college life.” Shiro looked over at Lance. “How in the world did I not see you there?”

Lance visibly froze and made sure to keep his eyes specifically on Shiro, almost as if he looked at anyone other than who he was talking to, he’d say something he’d regret. “I kinda wander around, ya know?” He said smoothly, as if nothing were wrong. It convinced all but Hunk and Pidge. “I have friends that fall into different groups, so I tend to float around.”

“Well, it was a big house.” Hunk said.

“And from my experience, it was bigger and wilder than usual. So now that I think about it, it makes sense that we didn’t run into each other.” Shiro chuckled and turned to Keith. “Small world, huh, little bro?” He teased with a light jab of his elbow into his brother’s side.

“Yeah...small world.”

“I. Feel so. Betrayed….again.” Lance said slowly. Pidge and Hunk groaned at his reaction. Pidge couldn’t even hold back a face palm.

“Lance, again, we didn’t betray you in any way!” Pidge exclaimed.

“BETRAYED!” Lance repeated, louder than needed. The table was quickly quiet. Lance glanced about and looked up to see their waitress and a waiter holding their pizzas, staring at him as if they had witnessed his outburst. It took Lance a moment to realize they had.

“Good job, Lance.” Keith muttered under his breath, hiding his face in his hand from embarrassment. Why was he associated with such embarrassing people? His brother included.

Lance blushed a deep red and sat up straight, his eyes firmly trained on the far wall behind Keith as the pizzas were distributed. He also ignored the chuckling from Pidge as best as possible. The only time he looked down was when their split pizza was placed before him. With a grimace, Lance turned their pizza around so his Hawaiian part of the pizza was facing him. Grabbing a piece to shove into his mouth, he looked up at Keith to see him just staring.

“What?” He asked after swallowing his bite.

“Does my half of the pizza offend you that much?” Keith asked, seemingly frustrated with Lance’s reactions.

“It’s a disgrace to pineapple on pizza.” He stated. “Like your mullet is to society.” Lance added and promptly took another large bite of his slice again, his eyes trained on the man across from him in a daring glare.

Keith glared back as he took a slice from his half. “Well, you shake your voice too much when you sing.” Lance almost choked on his pizza at the snappy comeback while Keith took an angry bite out of his own slice. “That’ll ruin your vocal chords.”

“I do not!” Lance argued after a hard swallow of his pizza and a large swig of his soda. “I bet you can’t actually sing! You probably sound like a barn owl!”

Keith rolled his eyes and took another bite of his pizza. “I guess I sing better than you do, then.”

“Enough already!” Pidge shouted, just loud enough for their table to hear. “You’re making it hard for us to eat with your stupid arguments. Just shut up and eat.” She growled and took a large bite of her own meaty slice.

“You know,” Shiro started, looking between Keith and Lance. “You could just both try a bite of each other’s pizza and end the dispute once and for all?”

“No.” The stubborn men said in unison.

\---

After finishing their dinner, that was a little uncomfortable off and on because of Lance and Keith - mostly Lance starting the bickering -, they paid their shares and headed outside to the freezing cold.

“God it feels like my tits will freeze off…” Pidge muttered as she shook under her layers of coats. Despite all of that, she was still very cold very easily.

“Katie, language!” Shiro scolded.

“What?” She squeaked. “Your chest is so muscular that you might as well have boobs, too! You have a larger heat source on that chest of yours!” She jabbed a gloved finger at him with a impish smirk. “You, sir, need a bra for all that cleavage.”

Shiro’s cheeks went red faster than the cold air could make them. Keith stifled a chuckle when his brother glared at him for it. It was perfect blackmail.

“I hate to cut this short,” Lance said with a shiver. “but my butt is freezing already and I have class early in the morning.”

“And I have to finish my project. Hunk, you’re driving us. Andale!” Pidge stuttered from a shiver.

“Before you guys go,” Shiro said quickly, causing everyone to stop, taking out his phone. “Lance, can we get your number?”

“We?” Lance repeated.

“Who’s ‘we’?” Keith added.

Shiro shrugged his shoulders and gestured between himself and his brother. “You and me.”

“Why...?” Keith asked, giving his brother a suspicious look.

“I wanna make sure they all get home alright and since we’re all gonna be seeing each other at the Lion’s Castle, might as well exchange numbers, right?” Shiro countered.

Lance beamed at the notion, his attention solely on Shiro. “Heck yeah I want your number!”

As Lance and Shiro exchanged numbers, Hunk called out to Keith. “Since you live across from Lance, wanna ride home?”

“No thanks. I drove my bike and I need to take Shiro shopping, so I’m gonna head back to his place for the night to make sure he actually buys real food.” Shiro glared at his brother.

“I don’t need you to take me shopping.” He mumbled.

“And the last time you didn’t eat out, was…?” Keith asked.

Shiro went silent and shifted his feet as he put his phone away. “Okay, I need to go shopping.” He finally admitted. “But I’ve been busy with work and our band practice.”

“I haven’t gotten to see you play yet. What band are you?” Lance asked, pocketing his phone.

“We’re STAR-Dust. We do the closing act every friday to wind down the crowd.”

“I should stay longer sometime.” Lance commented.

“Why not this week?” Shiro suggested. “Maybe Keith can give you a ride from school to the lounge since I have to pick up my bandmates?” He then turned his eyes towards his brother.

Keith’s eyes went wide, his cheeks turning a brighter shade of red thanks to the cold. “Do what now?” He squeaked.

“You two need to exchange numbers anyways, so why not just get a lift from Keith?” Shiro pressued.

“As much as I would love a lift from the mullet, I have to go straight from school to the lounge and Hunk and Pidge are my ride.” Lance hated to be the bearer of bad news, kinda, but he had to bust that bubble of a dream.

“What about on your way home?” Shiro asked.

“Shiro, I get off at 1 AM and don’t get home until 2.” Keith glared at his brother. Oh, he knew what he was trying to do. He wasn’t gonna have it.

“I’m usually still up around then, but, uh…” Lance started.

“You never have anything going on on the weekends, Lance.” Pidge interrupted.

“Can’t hurt for you two to talk outside of work.” Hunk shrugged a smile. “Like Shiro said, we’re gonna be seeing each other from now as long as we work at the LC. Might as well, right?”

Keith and Lance lance between them and their friends and Keith’s brother. So they had a point. But that didn’t mean Lance had to like it. It also meant the Keith had to like what his brother was knowingly trying to do.

“Fine.” Lance sighed. He pulled his phone back out and unlocked it, holding out to Keith.

“What?” Keith said after looking at the phone.

“Uh, exchanging numbers, remember?” Lance said.

“Oh. Right.” Keith dug out his phone and unlocked it as well, handing it over after taking the other’s phone.

“This isn’t even an iPhone….” Lance muttered.

“Don’t even start, Lance.” Keith said with exasperation after quickly adding himself to Lance’s phone. They gave their phones back to each other and saved the newly added numbers. Keith stopped and gave Lance an irritated look. His contact name read ‘Lance The Great’. “Really?”

“You can always change it to something a lot better. Like, ‘Lance Amazing’ or ‘Lance Handsome’!” He grinned.

“No.” Keith deadpanned.

Lance shrugged and walked back over to Pidge and Hunk. “Suit yourself! You guys have shopping to do, Hunk has a paper to work on, Pidge has a project to do and I have a heater waiting for me at home!”

“Yeah, we’ll see you at the lounge, guys.” Pidge smiled as she walked back over to the brothers and gave them a quick hug before running back over to her friends to head for Hunk’s car.

As they went their separate ways, Shiro nudged into Keith’s side. “I guess I just helped you get your crush’s number, didn’t I?”

Keith sputtered and glared at Shiro, his entire face going red and all the way down his neck. “Is that all it was about?!”

“No.” Shiro admitted. “I meant it when I said that we should all have each other’s number’s since we’ll be seeing more of each other. But it was a good way for you to get his number since I know you won’t do anything to do it yourself” He chuckled.

“Shiro?”

“Yes, Keith?”

“I seriously hate you.”

“No you don’t. I helped you get your crush’s number, as is my brotherly duty. So I know you love me now.” Shiro said, only to start laughing after a brief thought. “I can’t believe that was the guy you’ve been crushing on for the past 6 months and literally fell for at the lounge! Let me tell you, I approve of him so far!”

“Oh my god, Takashi, please stop!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmm...I wonder what happened between Lance and Keith? And why Shiro went missing? I guess y’all are gonna have to stick around to find out! At least you guys now know the deep dark secret that both Lance and Keith like pineapple on pizza AND the name of Shiro's band. To be honest, the reason the name didn't come up was because I had a hard time deciding what to call them and landed with STAR-Dust. I needed a name that would have a double meaning for later chapters.
> 
> This chapter’s drink: Root Beer ( Not the soda ) –
> 
> ½ oz ( 15 ml ) kahlua  
> ½ oz ( 15 ml ) Galliano  
> ½ oz ( 15 ml ) soda  
> ½ oz ( 15 ml ) beer
> 
> Mix gently with ice and strain into a shot glass.


	6. Gremlin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge is shipping trash even when it’s between her two idiot friends. So she reels in a few helping hands for some help in a plan of hers. After all, those bumbling idiots aren’t gonna figure it out themselves.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKAY, FIRST, SEASON 3 OMFG THE KLANCE MOMENTS I CAN’T. Also, holy Kaltenecker!! Over a thousand views!! I’m gonna be honest guys, when I started writing this, I thought by now I’d have only about a hundred views and if any kudos. So to see over a thousand views is amazing and aweing and has really motivated me to work harder on this. Thank you guys so much!
> 
> This chapter isn’t like the other chapters so far. Most of this is gonna be in a group text format via Pidge’s phone, so each of them have their own nickname that Pidge has given them. And they are incredibly creative. Also, I love Pidge. Especially in this chapter.
> 
> I also had to edit the tags when I uploaded the last chapter because I had Shiro as bi and Matt as demi. I shouldn’t always think of something completely different while I type at the same time. So tags are fixed!

**Chapter Six: Gremlin**

 

When Pidge got home to her small studio apartment and plopped down on the couch after a quick shower and putting her leftover pizza in the fridge. As she scrolled through her Facebook, she noticed that Hunk had apparently taken pictures during their meal, the first of them being of Lance and Keith with Shiro just barely in the picture. It was when their pizzas had come out. There were some likes, one's being from Shiro, Keith, Lance, a few of Hunk and Lance’s friends and relatives, and now Pidge. There was a single comment on the picture, from Lance of course.

“ _When in the hell did u take this - all of these?!_ **_And_ ** _ur friends w/ Keith and Shiro?! #4everbtrayed_ ”

Pidge rolled her eyes and kept looking at the few images Hunk had uploaded. She liked a few pictures, made a comment or two, and then tossed her phone onto the coffee table. With a sigh, she slid herself of the couch and onto the floor, seating herself in front of her computer that sat next to her discarded phone. But despite having not turned the TV on for background sound for once, for the past hour, she couldn’t keep her attention on her speech for her project.

Her friends acted weird today. Specifically Keith and Lance. Different subjects showed different results in how they acted. Granted, it was the first time she had seen all of them interact with each other, but it certainly was interesting to see Lance and Keith act the way they did with each other. So grabbing her phone, she leaned back against the couch and started typing.

  


**Group chat: Bumbling Idiots.**

**Recipients: Ramsey’s Rival; Dem Tits; Mustache You Something**

9:07 Me: hey guys, you notice anything weird btw lance and keith?

9:08 _Ramsey’s Rival:_ you mean aside from the fact that they fought like an old married couple most of the time?

9:08 **Dem Tits:** At least they got along for most of dinner.

9:08 **Dem Tits:** That was actually the most I have seen Keith talk to people other than me.

9:08 Me: which says a lot bc we don’t talk as much as we used to.

9:09 _Ramsey’s Rival:_ maybe we needed lance to bring us all together?

9:09 Me: he’s a social butterfly. i’m not surprised.

9:09 Me: i wanna know what happened btw lance and keith i wasn't there when shit went down!

9:09 **Dem Tits:** Wait, Keith and Lance have met before?

9:10 _Ramsey’s Rival:_ it was freshman year

9:10 _Ramsey’s Rival:_ lance was next pick for a spot in the music theory class that didnt conflict with his schedule

9:10 _Ramsey’s Rival:_ so lance seen him as a rival because proff iverson only wanted the best of the best in his class

9:11 Me: how’d they decide that???

9:11 _Ramsey’s Rival:_ probably because hes shiros brother

9:11 **Dem Tits:** He’s never been the nicest or wisest professor.

9:11 **Dem Tits:** I honestly think that is the best thing with not going to GU anymore.

9:12 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : Did something happen with those rascals tonight?

9:12 Me: didn’t realize i added u! hi coran! =)

9:12 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : hi coran! :D

9:12 **Dem Tits** : Hello Coran!

9:12 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : Hello everyone! So what happened with Lance and Keith this fine night?

9:13 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : they fought like a married couple

9:13 **Dem Tits** : Keith is crushing on Lance.

9:13 Me: they kept flirting and didn’t even know it.

9:13 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : they both even like pineapple on pizza!

9:13 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : Oh! I see!

9:13 Me: wait!! hold on!! keith has a crush on lance?!

9:13 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : KEITH HAS A CRUSH ON LANCE?! SINCE WHEN?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

9:13 **Dem Tits** : Since he moved into the apartment complex across from him.

9:13 Me: srsly???

9:13 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : really?

9:13 **Dem Tits** : Yup. Keith didn’t remember Lance until after his debut at the LC.

9:14 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : I see a lot has happened that I wasn’t aware of.

9:14 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : What happened to our gossip circle at the lounge?

9:14 **Dem Tits** : You and Keith have been busy training green horns and have been plenty busy.

9:15 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : But, Keith is only training Matt?

9:15 Me: do u remember what happened last time keith tried to train someone?

9:15 Me: and it was someone he didn’t know.

9:15 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : the dude quit that week

9:16 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : He had such potential. But you’re right. Keith isn’t the smoothest or patient of teachers.

9:16 **Dem Tits** : At least with people he doesn’t know very well…

9:16 _Ramsey’s Riva_ l: not to change the subject but shiro I have a quick question

9:16: **Dem Tits** : Shoot

9:16 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : arent you supposed to be shopping with keith?

9:17 Me: that’s a good question. shiro how r u getting away with this?

9:17 **Dem Tits** : I have mastered texting without looking at my phone.

9:17 **Dem Tits** : I was a teenager once, remember?

9:17: **_Mustache You Something_ ** : That is quite a talent!

9:17 Me: sPeking of keith lets get back on track.

9:17 Me: *speaking

9:18 Me: shiro, u said keith has a rush on lance?

9:18 Me: *crush

9:18 Me: FUCK MY PHONE!!!!

9:18 **Dem Tits** : Pidge!

9:18 Me: lol srry not sorry

9:18 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : i know lance didnt know keith lived across from him until last week

9:18 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : i guess it’d actually be two weeks by now?

9:19 Me: spill the deets! how/when did keith get a crush on lance?

9:19 Me: while they were in school together?

9:19 **Dem Tits** : Keith could hear piano playing every night for the past few months. He really fell for the music.

9:19 **Dem Tits** : Then when Lance debuted at the LC, Keith heard him sing.

9:20 **Dem Tits** : I was half teasing him when I said he gained a crush on Lance at first note that night.

9:20 **Dem Tits** : I didn’t know exactly how true that would be until he had his run in with Lance the next day.

9:20 Me: smh lol

9:20 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : awww thats adorable! x3

9:20 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : That’s ironic!

9:20 **Dem Tits** : My brother is hopeless with romance.

9:21 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : Is Keith really a hopeless romantic?

9:21 Me: omfg yes he rly is.

9:21 **Dem Tits** : He will never admit it, though.

9:21 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : lance is one too hell admit it though

9:22 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : Sounds like they should get along easily.

9:22 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : yeah they should and they would if they could just sit down and actually talk to each other

9:22 Me: you think so?

9:23 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : i may have only known lance since high school but i know him pretty well by now

9:23 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : theyd easily be two peas in a pod if they could

9:24 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : Can’t help you there. I don’t know Lance very well. Always working the bar, you see.

 

 

Pidge stopped and looked over some of the texts they’ve all sent. She began to recall what happened tonight and realized what all those little things that seemed odd meant. She smirked to know one but herself as she typed away again.

 

**You have changed Blundering Idiots to Operation Lovesick Idiots**

9:25 Me: alright gentlebitchez, i have an idea!

9:25 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : operation lovesick idiots?

9:26 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : What’s this?? ={O

9:26 Me: lance is slow and keith is dense af.

9:26 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : Don’t forget hard headed.

9:27 Me: that too.

9:27 Me: anywayz!

9:27 Me: i say we set them up on a date.

9:28 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : they wont knowingly go out with each other pidge

9:28 **Dem Tits** : It’s a great idea, but you know it’s hard to get Keith to agree to something like that.

9:29 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : not gonna lie shiro but i kinda forgot you were in the chat

9:29 Me: what took u so long?

9:29 Me: did you get caught???

9:30 **Dem Tits** : No, I had to pay and was catching up on chat.

9:30 **Dem Tits** : As long as there is a date, time, and place, I can work around getting Keith to cave.

9:30 Me: by cave do u mean blackmail?

9:30 **Dem Tits** : Of course! He won’t go if I don’t.

9:31 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : i dont envy having siblings like you two

9:31 Me: imagine how lance feels.

9:31 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : point taken

9:31 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : Well, if you’re all planing a blind date for our two love birds, I have the perfect place in mind!

9:32 Me: it’s gotta be a time when we can spy on them!

9:32 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : why do we need to spy on them?

9:32 Me: bc those idiots won’t fess up to what actually happens on the date.

9:33 Me: lance will bitch about it and say it was awful even if it goes well.

9:33 Me: and keith’s gonna be a blushing whiney bitch and say nthing happened.

9:34 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : then how about tomorrow?

9:34 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : lance has music theory class in the morning and pidge and i have evening classes and hopefully all of our afternoons are free!

9:34 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : I hate to break it to you Hunk, but I have work in the afternoon.

9:35 **Dem Tits** : Sorry guys, but I do, too.

9:35 Me: hunk and i can do the spying then all four of us won’t stand out.

9:35 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : and /i/ won’t?

9:36 Me: depends.

9:36 Me: coran wats the name of the place ur thinking of?

9:37 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : It’s a bit of a hole in the wall, but it’s popular! I also know the owner!

9:37 _Ramsey’s Rival:_ great! whats it called?

9:37 **_Mustache You Something_** :  The Fripping Bulgogian!

9:38 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : dont you mean the flipping bologna?

9:39 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : Nope! That’s the name!

9:39 Me: wow

9:39 **Dem Tits** : Coran, what place is this exactly?

9:40 **Dem Tits** : It sounds like a gang hideout.

9:40 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : It’s not! It’s named after...I’ve actually forgotten what or why?

9:40 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : He did use to be one though! Turned over a new leaf some odd years ago!

9:41 **Dem Tits** : Sorry to drop out, but we’re at the car. I’ll catch up on this later.

9:41 Me: good luck getting keith on this date!

9:41 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : later shiro!

9:41 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : See you at the lounge!

9:41 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : sooo what kinda place is this flipping place?

9:41 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : flipping? fripping?

9:42 Me: fripping bulgogian.

9:42 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : yeah that!

9:42 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : It’s a cute little coffee and pastry shoppe!

9:42 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : The name sounds rather brute, I admit, but it’s rather well put together. Very stylish!

9:43 Me: your style is v...unique. so im looking forward to it!

9:43 **_Mustache You Something_ ** : It is rather stylish, isn’t it?

9:43 _Ramsey’s Rival_ : do you guys really think this is going to work?

9:44 Me: only 1 way to find out!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry to leave this short and as it is, but since this is mostly a text conversation, I wanted to keep it that way.
> 
> And yes, when Hunk texts, punctuations and capitalizations go right out the door! He doesn’t actually write like that, even with his notes for school...except the no caps part - but still!
> 
> Also, idk why the end notes for chapter 1 are appearing in every chapter except chapter 1? And idk how to fix it. Sorry, y'all.
> 
> This chapter’s drink: Gremlin –
> 
> ½ ( 15 ml ) oz vodka  
> ¾ oz ( 23 ml ) blue curacao  
> ¾ oz ( 23 ml ) rum  
> ½ oz( 15 ml ) orange juice
> 
> Pour liquids into a shaker with ice and shake well. Then strain into a shot glass and serve.


	7. Ice Breaker

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Breakfast and brunch dates are amazing and refreshing compared to your normal dinner or lunch date.
> 
> Blind dates can be absolutely awful and no one likes going out with someone they’ve never met.
> 
> At least, in this case, they actually know each other! Just not very well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for being so patient with me and updating this...and for my liver because I did a lot more drinking than I usually do just to help me sleep for a few weeks. Also to my friends, my editor included, for being there when I needed them most. They really helped me stay as sane as possible and helping get back to my normal. It’s nice to be writing and drawing again even if it’s just a little bit.
> 
> Still, sorry for not living up to the schedule the past couple months. Chapter 8 will be late, but will be updated at some point in December (( because the holidays in my family is hell )), but other than that, this is going back to it's usual schedule as of now...ish.
> 
> At some point I had started adding songs to every chapter from here on out. So I’ll be making a playlist on YouTube for y’all to listen to once this progresses a bit more.

**Chapter Seven: Ice Breaker**

  
  


Keith had pulled up to this weird little place that was about a 10 minute drive away from the Lion’s Castle, which was convenient for him since he had to be at work by 1. But his reason for being at this café was less convenient for him. After turning the engine off and removing his helmet, he looked up at the building he parked in front of. It wasn’t too big, but it wasn’t too small. The name made it seem like it was a club or a bar, which he didn’t think was an ideal place to go for a blind date, especially in the middle of the day.

He grabbed his book bag that doubled as his work bag, there was no sense in not not using it after he was kicked out of school, and slipped his helmet under his arm and reluctantly went in. As soon as the door opened, he was not only greeted by warmth, but the smell of fresh baked goods and roasted coffee beans filled his nose. It was unexpectedly busy, especially for a coffee shop in the afternoon, but despite the amount of people, it was relatively quiet. The only loud noises you could hear were from the machines that grind, brew, blend and steam the milk for the different beverages.

Shifting just to the otherside of the entrance, Keith dug out his phone from his leather jacket and look over the reminder text Shiro had sent him early this morning. He was supposed to meet this mystery person at 11, which was 5 minutes away. The worst part was that Shiro didn’t even tell him  _ who _ he was meeting, just that he would know who it was as soon as he saw him.

Keith still didn’t know how Shiro convinced him to come to this blind date.

 

**Last Night**

 

_ They had just gotten home from the store. Keith had noticed that Shiro was a bit distracted while they shopped. He caught him looking at his phone a few times, but didn’t say anything. It was a normal occurrence for him to get texts at random times of the day. Shiro always said it was either work or his bandmates. _

_ Shiro was slowly scrolling through his phone, reading something as he put cold and frozen food away in his fridge. He ignored it, knowing it was none of his business. “Hey, Keith…” Shiro started as Keith was helping him put away the last of his groceries. _

_ “Hey, what?” He hummed, not looking over to his brother as he was stocking the pantry. _

_ “How would you feel about going on a blind date with someone tomorrow?” Shiro asked with all seriousness. _

_ Keith paused with a box of apple cinnamon chex cereal in his hand. He turned and looked at his brother as if he had asked the stupidest question you could ever ask a person. For Keith, this was one of those questions. “Is that what has had you distracted this entire time?!” Shiro finished putting the last item in the fridge and shrugged like it wasn’t a big deal. Keith sighed. “You know I hate the idea of dating anyone, Shiro.” _

_ “No you don’t.” Shiro chuckled. “You went on one date in middle school and you got so embarrassed that you swore of dating.” _

_ “Exactly! I hate dating!” Keith turned back to his task at hand, doing so quickly so he could make a bolt to Shiro’s spare bedroom. “Bucky thought I was a girl so he asked me out, only to find out that I am, indeed, a boy.” Keith whipped back around to Shiro, crushing the plastic bag in his hand. “He didn’t even know my name, Shiro!” _

_ “True, but when he found out, he still wanted to go out with you. But you were so embarrassed by the whole thing that you completely stopped talking to him.” Shiro clarified. “He’s the one who came to me asking what he had done wrong.” _

_ Keith hesitated with his next words. “He did?” He asked, earning a nod from his brother. “I didn’t know that…” He muttered with a pout. _

_ “I tried to tell you, but you were so adamant about not dating after that you didn’t want to hear what I had to say about mine and his conversation.” Shiro frowned. “You broke the poor boy’s heart.” _

_ He bit his lip, now feeling ashamed of himself for that. “I’d tell him sorry if I could.” _

_ “Oh, he’s gotten over it by now. He’s actually overseas doing marketing now!” Shiro said with bright grin. _

_ “Wait, you still talk to him even after that stunt I pulled?!” Exactly what else has Shiro not told him?! _

_ “Well, yeah. You might have fucked up your relationship with him, but he and I are still talking.” Shiro said bluntly as he walked over to his cabinet and grabbed a glass, filling it with ice and water. “So I’m gonna ask you again, do you wanna go on this blind date?” _

_ “Blind dates are awful, Shiro. Everyone knows that.” Keith sighed, shutting the pantry door. _

_ “I don’t think this one will be.” He said with confidence. _

_ “And how do you know that?” _

_ “Because I’m your brother and if you don’t go, I’ll hold this reminder of Bucky over your head for the rest of your life.” Shiro said before taking a gulp of water. _

_ “That’s low, even for you.” Keith admitted. And it really was. _

_ “I know it is, but you’ll never actually go on one if I don’t help out somehow. I mean, look what it took just to get you Lance’s number tonight.” Keith frowned and bit the inside of his cheek. _

_ “Besides, if it doesn’t go well, you don’t have to do it ever again!” Shiro tried to recover, moving towards his brother and laying a comforting hand on his sagging shoulder. “Just this one blind date and I’ll never bring up Bucky again.” _

 

_ \--- _

 

Keith frowned as he put his phone away. He didn’t like the reason he was here, but Shiro was right. He wasn’t going to do anything himself when it came to ever being with anyone. It was hard enough to make friends, but anything beyond friendship was harder.

The raven haired man scanned the open room, looking for a face that he would recognize.

“Keith?”

Keith jumped and looked over to see Lance, looking at him with a raised eyebrow as he huffed and puffed, as if he was just running for his life.

“Lance?”

“What are you doing here?” Lance asked harshly after a moment.

 

\---

 

Lance had finished up his morning class for Music Theory and was heading towards the bathroom with a bounce in his step, quietly humming a little made up tune. After this, it was off to his blind date. He would admit only to Hunk and Pidge that he didn’t realize what he set himself up for after they group called him last night.

**Last Night**

_ Lance walked into his apartment and tossed his bag on the floor by his desk that sat next to his door. He was cold and he didn’t know how tired he was until he got through the door. It was a good night, a bit irritating with Keith having joined them for dinner, but at least he finally got to meet Shiro. Even with the excitement and the long day of classes he had today, he wanted to go to bed rather than play piano to unwind and end up passed out with the keys indented into his face. _

_ He changed into his pajamas and robe had proceeded his nightly routine of skin care. His family and most of his friend’s called it over kill, but he found it essential. A 7 step skin care regimen seemed a bit much at first, but you can’t wake up naturally beautiful without a single blemish every morning, now can you? With his final step done, his overnight face mask, Tired as all hell or otherwise, he was not going to go to bed without his nightly routine. _

_ Lance slipped off his robe and slippers, put on his sleeping mask, and slid into bed with a yawn. As he lied there, ready for sleep to take him, he thought over has day lightly. He met Shiro, had the best cheesiest pizza the city offered, got to have dinner with Shiro, had no homework to do for the rest of the week. That he can recall, at least. _

_ “AY DIO MIO!!!” _

_ Lance ripped off his sleeping mask, not caring that he messed up his overnight face mask, and dashed out of his room and straight to his desk. Lance was an idiot. He berated himself as he dug through the book pile on his desk and dug turned on his laptop. He had a paper due in the morning and he completely forgot about it! _

_ As he hurried into his paper, Lance’s phone rang. Without looking, he answered it. _

_ “Hello?” Lance answered, tucking his phone between his jawline and his shoulder as he typed. _

_ “Hey, I have Pidge on the line, too. Are you busy tomorrow?” _

_ “You mean aside from now since I have a paper I totally forgot to write that’s due in the morning?” He questioned quickly. _ __  
_  
_ __ “Lance, why do you do this to yourself?” Pidge sighed.

_ “I don’t always do it, now hurry up, I’m in the zone!” Lance ushered as he continued to quickly scan his papers and books. _

_ “We know someone who would love to go on a date with you~” Pidge chimed. _

_ “But it’s gonna be a blind date because they’re pretty shy.” Hunk added. _

_ Lance wasn’t paying full attention aside from someone liked him and wanted to have a date. _

_ “Okay, yeah, I’ll totally go. Now can I get back to my report?” _

_ “How long is your report supposed to be?” Pidge asked casually. _

_ “Like…” Lance stopped and looked at his syllabus. “2 pages long, which is a freakin’ miracle that it is!” _

_ “At least it’s Music Theory.” Hunk sighed. _

_ “Yep.” Lance drawled out as he started to type away again. _

_ “Be sure to set your alarm, Lance! It’s at 1 PM tomorrow after your class!” Hunk reminded. _

_ “If you’re late, I’ll kill you.” Pidge warned. _

_ “Pidge…” Hunk groaned. _

_ “I got it, I got it.” Lance mumbled, more so about his paper than what his friends were telling him. _

_ “I’ll text you the info right now, so you don’t forget.” Hunk said, and as promised, his phone made a chime at Lance, notifying him that the text had come through. _

_ “Right, I won’t be late. Can I get back to work now?” Lance asked, his irritation now set on the bullshit that are school papers. Why was homework necessary anyways?! _

_ “Fine! Night, Lance!” Pidge yawned out. _

_ “Good luck, buddy! Goodnight!” _

_ “G’night.” He said quickly and hung up his phone. _

 

_ \--- _

 

Lance looked at himself in the mirror and saw the slight bags under his eyes. He had to proofread and edit his paper a few times last night after passing out a couple times. It was midnight by the time he got to bed this morning. Don’t get him wrong, he’s pretty good with his papers, but when he forgets them and does them last minute like last night, they don’t turn out so well. Full of spelling errors, forgotten words, missing sentences, sometimes even part of a sentence was missing, and many, many grammar errors. He was lucky he finished it and made it look as if he had finished it a week ago...he hopes.

Lance sighed and turned on the faucet, splashing cold water onto his face to wake himself up more. He wasn’t ready-to-pass-out tired, he was stress tired from having to do the paper so quickly. His brain literally hurt…

He stood up straight, wiped his face and fixed his hair, checking over inch of him to make sure that when he got on the bus to that coffee shop with a weird ass name he couldn’t pronounce he didn’t look unpresentable. When he finished, he gave himself a grin and a wink, throwing in his famous finger guns. Satisfied, he pulled out his phone and seen that it was 20 till 1.

The coffee shop was 20 minutes away and he didn’t know which bus to get on.

“Oh fuck me!” He hollered and dashed out of the bathroom and down the hall, running to the bus stop as fast as his long legs could take him. Lance determined that he was not having a good morning and he didn’t know if he was getting on the right bus or not. Thankfully, there was a bus there, but it looked about ready to leave. Lance was given a Hail Mary after getting the driver’s attention, learning that the bus was dropping off a block away from where he was going.

Lance plopped down in a seat closest to the door and bounced his leg. He took out his phone constantly, making sure he wasn’t going to be late or that, for some reason in his mind, his phone wasn’t changing the time on him. About 10 minutes before he arrived at the drop off, he took a deep breath, knowing he’d have to book it the moment his feet hit the pavement, and looked at the other messages from his group chat with Pidge and Hunk this morning while he was on his way to school.

Pidge told him that his date was extremely good looking: dark hair, pretty eyes, a little shorter than him and their hair was a little on the long side. Hunk said that they were very alike in personality. So Lance’s imagination through all of class went wild. Maybe he was meeting a beautiful girl with long, flowing hair that would splay across the pillow when they slept, with the cutest, dorkiest laugh who loved puns and nightly facial routines as much as he did. Or maybe it was a guy with great hair and awesome muscles, looking absolutely badass but was the cheesiest, sweetest, and most romantically shy guy ever. He might also like his jokes or, better yet, help add to his jokes to make them funnier.

He knew no matter what gender they were or what they looked like, they had to be able to sing. If there was anything Lance wanted in a relationship was someone who could sing. Just so when they were together, lazing about with the radio going or when he played the piano or guitar, they’d be able to have fun singing together.

“...-id.”

Someone who he could have fun with no matter what they did.

“...-ey kid!”

Where they knew each other so well, the silence wouldn’t be uncomfor-

“Hey kid from Garrison!”

Lance snapped out of his imagination and looked up to see the bus driver and a few other passengers trying to get his attention. He looked at them with confusion before the bus driver pointed to the opened doors. “You wanted this stop, right?”

He looked out the window and jumped up with his backpack. “Yes! Thank you!” Lance said quickly as he bolted from the bus, booking it down the sidewalk. He glanced at every shop he passed, looking for some place called The Fripping Bulgogian. Weird name, but according to Yelp, it was almost a 5 star place. It wasn’t until the last minute that he seen it, having zoomed past it after looking across the street for the weird coffee shop. After skidding - well, if slipping on ice is counted as skidding - to a stop, he turned around and dashed into the busy shop.

Panting, Lance looked around for someone matching the description that Pidge had given him as he tried to catch his breath.

“Lance?”

Lance stopped, his breath catching in his throat when he looked over to see Keith, leaning against the well next to the door he just ran through. A million questions ran through his head before he finally could breathe enough to voice at least one question that came out a little harsher than he meant it to be: “What are you doing here?”

 

\---

 

**A few hours earlier...**

Pidge waited outside her dorm for Hunk to pick her up, dressed in warm clothes that she borrowed from her roommate who happened to be a few sizes bigger than her, so they could go and watch their two idiot friends not beat each other to a pulp.

Hunk had recommended that they wear the wigs they used for Halloween last year since they stood out so much as it is. She couldn’t blame him. Her hair was bright and mangy looking - wasn’t her fault that it naturally curled every which way after she cut her hair. So there she stood, long black hair with curled bangs in a thick, long brown button up coat and boots that were a size too small.

An old yellow truck pulled up next to her. When the window rolled down, the man in the driver seat leaned over and smirked, pulling his glasses down his nose just enough for his brown eyes to look over the frames. His blonde hair spiked every which way, minus the long, stringy bangs.

“Need a lift there, sweetie?”

“Hunk, no matter how hard you try to act like a bad boy, especially looking like that, it'll never be convincing.” Pidge said monotonous.

Hunk’s face fell. “But Shay told me I was convincing!”

“She lied.” She said as she climbed into the passenger seat of the truck.

“Why would she lie to me?!” Hunk whined.

“Because she loves you, Hunk. She probably thinks it's cute.” Pidge buckled herself in and took his sunglasses off. “It's not a bad thing. Better to be an attractive fake bad boy for your girlfriend than an actual bad boy that's more likely to cheat.”

“I guess you're right.” Hunk sighed, but he smile was there.

“Do you think that idiot got any sleep?”

“Nope.”

The drive from the dorms was short. They made sure to go earlier than when they had told Keith and Lance so they wouldn't be seen by their friends. Parking a few blocks away, two buildings from the Lion’s Castle, before finally entering the Fripping Bulgogian to take their seats that would allow them to spy on their friends from anywhere in the large room.

Hunk and Pidge ordered their food and drink, then sat and waited, phones at the ready to update Shiro and Coran and possibly for photographic proof. Hunk looked down at his phone and checked the time. They were 30 minutes early. Shiro had reminded them that Keith was a guy who was always 10 to 5 minutes early before any occasion, but you had to tell him a different time or else he would actually be late. And for Lance, he was always either on time because he was fast on his feet or late because he couldn’t get his shit hole of a car to start.

“Do you think they’ll actually find out that they’re being set up on a blind date with each other?” Hunk asked, starting to rethink this plan now that they were there and it was in affect. “I mean, we didn’t tell them their names-”

“Because Lance would most likely say no and Keith would deny any affection towards him.”

“-and we didn’t give them too much detail about what they look like without giving them away. I mean, I hope that’s what Shiro did.”

“Hunk, they’ll be fine.” Pidge said calmly as she quickly sent a text to Coran and Shiro, notifying them that they got to the café alright. “Those two are more dense than my grandma’s 50 year old fruit cake, but they’re not stupid. Lance will figure it out slower than Keith will since Keith actually likes Lance.” She continued after nodding to the quiet waiter that delivered their order.

“I know, but still. If it doesn’t go well and they find out it was us then what are we gonna do? I don’t think Lance will forgive us and Keith will kill us!” Hunk panicked, his voice slowly rising in volume.

“And so will Shiro and Coran. Hunk, we don’t know what will happen yet. We’ll deal with it when it happens.” Pidge shrugged, taking a sip of her white chocolate mocha.

“I know, that but…” Hunk sighed and poked at his pastry. “I’ve seen Lance get demolished by heartbreak and betrayal. I don’t want to be on the receiving end of what happens when he gets his heart broken if this goes well at first and then everything goes downhill.”

Pidge stared at him for a moment. “Did something happen to Lance when you guys were in high school?”

“Yeah, there was. But it’s not something he likes to talk about, so he doesn’t tell anyone. I wouldn’t either.” Hunk looked at pidge above the frames of his sunglasses. “Sorry Pidge...that’s something that we can’t tell you either. Not because it’s a long story - I mean, it is, but it was just really, really bad.”

Pidge sat there with a sullen look, quiet before reluctantly starting again. “How bad was it exactly?”

“...So bad that it tore his family apart…”

Silence fell between them, uncomfortable and thick. Pidge shifted so to lean on her elbows on the table, her attention on the croissant breakfast sandwich in front of her. “I wish Lance would lean on us a bit more…” She muttered.

Before either could elaborate more on their conversation, Hunk looked towards the front door after hearing the rumble of Keith’s bike outside. “Keith is here!” He exclaimed, a little louder than he should have.

“How do you know? It’s loud in here.” She said with a sceptical glance up at her tall friend. Hunk pointed to the front door.

“Keith rides a custom red and black Harley motorcycle, right?”

“Yes, Hunk.”

“Then that is definitely him.”

Pidge looked up and out the window, seeing a very familiar bike and a very familiar red leather jacket.

“I thought we got here earlier than him?!” Hunk exclaimed.

“Not so loud Hunk!” Pidge scolded.

“Oops.” He cringed at his own mistake and lowered his voice. “I thought we were gonna be here earlier than them!” He exclaimed in a more hushed tone as the two of them watched Keith remove his helmet and walk into the busy establishment.

“We are, we’ve been here for like, 20 minutes now!” She replied just as quietly, which wasn’t by much.

They ducked their heads down and tried to act as normally as possible. Hunk reached down into his pocket and pulled out his phone and sent Coran and Shiro a text telling them that Keith had arrived earlier than they thought he would. It wasn’t long before they got a response from Shiro, saying that that was typical of Keith.

Hunk and Pidge watched out the corner of their eyes as Keith looked around the large sitting area. When it didn’t seem like Keith saw who he was meeting, he moved off to the side by the door. In Pidge’s experience, that was his go to move incase what he came for was a bust and he needed a quick getaway.

‘ _ Chicken… _ ’ Pidge thought.

Minutes passed and Hunk and Pidge began to worry. “Lance is usually a few minutes early for anything...” Hunk muttered.

“Not unless his car wouldn’t start this morning…” Pidge groaned.

“That part still hasn’t come in either…” Hunk added, knowing full well why his best friend was running late now.

Pidge looked down at her phone.

2 minutes.

In 2 minutes, if Lance doesn’t walk through that door, Keith will in fact leave. Keith isn’t always patient enough to wait a few minutes after the time he’s supposed to be meeting someone - that included for her and Shiro.

“Oh thank god…!” Hunk sighed in relief. Pidge looked up from her phone and just in time watched Lance slip on ice when he tried to stop and turn around. She couldn’t quite stifle the laugh that bubbled up.

Keith looked up at Lance.

Lance looked down at Keith.

Operation Lovesick Idiots was a go...hopefully.

 

\---

 

As Lance felt his breath catch up with him after dashed through the door, he looked over to see Keith leaning against the wall of the coffee shop, looking just as confused as he was. “What are you doing here?” he asked just as he found his ability to breath.

Keith shrugged and had a quick glance around with a shrug, gesturing to the whole room of the establishment. “I’m here to meet someone for coffee.”

Lance stood up straight as he caught his breath and shrugged off his coat. “Well, so am I.” He then smirked as he tied his coat around his waist. “Actually, I’m here for a blind coffee date, to be exact! And it’s with someone  _ really  _ pretty!”

Keith raised an eyebrow, his eyes squinting at Lance suspiciously. “You’re here for a coffee date, too?”

“What do you mean “too”?”

“Shiro set me up on a blind date with someone.”

“That's what Hunk and Pidge did for me…!” Lance said, meeting Keith with his own suspicion.

Lance and Keith stood there staring at each other as if one of them would have the answer to their similar situations. Slowly, that suspicion became more and more obvious as the two continued to stare, putting together their own deductions.

For Keith, it was because he wasn’t great at hiding his crushes. Shiro knew very well that Keith liked Lance, and seeing as how Lance was suddenly here, Keith finally got the full picture.

Shiro would soon be on his deathbed.

Keith groaned and hid his face in his hands to cover the rising blush and frustration he felt. Shiro set him up on a blind date and he was going to kill him for it.

“What’s wrong now?” Lance chided. Keith risked a glance above his fingers and saw Lance looking a little more irritated than he was earlier. He wasn’t getting what was happening fast enough.

Taking a deep breath and attempting to force his blush away, Keith moved his hands away enough for Lance to hear him. “You’re my blind date…”

Lance froze and blinked. “And you assume this why?”

Keith felt like a broken talking animatronic, mouth opening and closing with no sound and unmoving. Keith couldn’t tell Lance  _ why _ he knew he was his blind date. He couldn’t tell Lance it was because he was  _ crushing _ on him. Lance wouldn’t believe him even if he had all the right reasons for it.

Not to mention, how was he going to explain him crushing on Lance while  _ forgetting _ about him at the same time?!

Keith took another deep breath. ‘ _ Don’t. Panic. _ ’ He thought.

“What time are you supposed to be meeting this person?” Keith asked.

“At 11.” Lance said smugly.

“And I’m supposed to be meeting someone at 11.”

Lance’s eyes bulged a bit. “What? Nooo no no no, I am not supposed to be meeting you as my date! I’m supposed to be meeting someone who is actually into me and won’t forget my existence!”

Ouch. He had him there.

Lance watched as Keith deflated a bit. Okay, so, maybe that was a little too harsh. Keith had apologized for forgetting him. And yeah, Lance was being a stubborn child about accepting that apology to his face, but he did forgive him.

“Fine, okay, let me text Pidge and Hunk and see if they didn’t conspire with each other.” Lance muttered, pulling out his phone.

As Lance texted his friends, Keith looked around the room again. It was starting to get full and if Shiro, Hunk and Pidge really hadn’t pulled this fast one on them, it was best they find a seat before they fill up. Shiro was sneaky in some ways, but Pidge was especially so.

“Now we wait for a response.” Lance sighed, pocketing his phone once again.

“We should...get a seat anyways.” Keith said with a tilt of his head, motioning towards the tables.

“Good idea. Might as well take up the opportunity to get some caffeine while we’re here.” Lance said a little cheerily. As they walked over to the far corner by the window to a table with two available chairs, Keith looked at Lance curiously.

Lance was taking this better than he had thought he would...which was weird. He thought that Lance didn’t like him. He thought that the idea of him being Lance’s blind date was going to make him go ballistic or at least he’d outright reject the idea. Keith could handle this, right?

Right!

But Lance didn’t do any of that. He was taking it well, letting what was happening happen and just waiting for Hunk and Pidge to text him back. He was taking his bag and coat off and slinging them around the back of the chair he was claiming like this was normal. He and Lance didn’t do normal according to last night with the whole pizza ordeal.

Lance sat there comfortably as he watched Keith just stand there, staring at him, as if he were some strange creature needing observing “Are you gonna sit down, or...?”

Keith blinked and stood taller. “Um. Yeah. Of course!” He said as he sat down, placing his things down between his feet.

“Have you ever been here?” Lance asked, grabbing one of the small menus that sat on the table. ‘ _ Weird service for a weirdly named place. Fitting. _ ’ Lance thought as he looked over the menu.

“Nope.” He replied, grabbing one of the other menus. Keith peeked over his menu and watched him closely. Waiting for him to finally look at his phone, only to see him make a weird face at whatever it was he read on the menu. “Have you?”

“Not in the slightest.” He said slowly as he continued to scan the contents of what exactly this place sold.

Keith looked down at the menu himself and was a bit confused. Some things were your standard breakfast and brunch items, but others were a bit interesting. It looked like a gooey glob of eggs and cheese with different veggies cooked into it that he couldn’t quite figure out. To be honest, it looked like a bird ate an omelette and regurgitated it back up. The thought made Keith cringe.

“Hello!” Said a sweet but soft voice from above them. Keith and Lance looked up to see a beautiful woman standing at their table with a pen and notepad in hand. The perfect ginger except with bright brown eyes. “My name is Malocoti! We just started serving brunch if you’d like to still get breakfast. What can I get you two gentlemen?” She asked with a smile.

The two men looked at each other after a hello of their own. “I’ll have an iced black tea.” Lance said with a bright, toothy smile.

“Dark roast coffee. Could you bring extra cream?” Keith muttered.

“And to eat?” She nodded as she jotting down their drinks.

“Um…” Keith started hesitantly, eyeing Lance for a moment, quietly asking if he was ready or not. Lance shook his head, letting Keith continue. “We’re...not sure yet.” Malocoti nodded with a smile and walked off to get their drinks. Keith returned his attention to Lance, a little confused. “I thought you would be a coffee drinker?”

Lance chuckled, his attention on the menu. “I know, right? Cuban and a coffee drinker usually goes hand in hand, but I’m just not a big fan of coffee. Too bitter.”

“You’re Cuban?”

“Yep! Only half, but I am indeed Cuban.”

“So you speak Spanish?” Keith asked curiously, remembering the song he sang the night they ran into each other. Literally.

“Nope!"

Keith blinked. “You don’t speak Spanish?”

“I know a few words and sentences from my grandma, but other than that, no, I do not.” He chuckled a little, finally putting his menu down. He crossed his arms on the small table and leaned forward, his attention now fully on Keith. “If this is because of the song I sang that first night at Lion’s Castle, it’s only because my grandma loves that song. And it’s one way to catch the audience's attention, I guess!”

‘It certainly caught mine…’ Keith thought inwardly. No way he’d ever say that. “Ah. ” He grunted instead, his attention now falling onto his own menu as a way to distract himself from the blush that fought to rise to his cheeks from his own thought.

Lance observed Keith as he read his food options. He looked...primped up. Compared to how Lance has seen Keith when he was at school, which was usually a I-rolled-out-of-bed-and-left-like-this look. And then there was his uniform at the Lion’s Castle with an actual white dress shirt, black slacks and his hair combed back just enough to keep his hair out of the way as he worked. Only to change back into his everyday clothes that looked like they were just grabbed and shoved into his work bag.

But Keith looked like he tried to make his hair as perfect as possible when he took his bike helmet off, which worked. His clothes looked like they weren’t half way picked out, like he wanted to actually impress his blind date. To impress him, if Lance really was his blind date. The thought made his lips twitch.

“I kinda wanted to ask this, but I thought you were lactose intolerant?” Lance asked out of nowhere. Keith looked up at him long enough to reply.

“I had cheese on our pizza last night. What made you think I was allergic to milk?”

“Kinda wanted to ask last night, but we all got a bit side tracked last night.” Lance said with a casual shrug. Keith looked up over his menu to look at him again, waiting for his reason for asking. Lance shifted in his seat. “Okay, so...maybe we went to the same cafe on campus and noticed that, when you were ahead of me, that you wouldn’t get any cream in anything you got, so...I assumed you were lactose intolerant.”

Then Keith chuckled.

Chuckled.

That shouldn’t have made his heart leap the way it did, but oh, did it flip.

“That isn’t why I don’t get milk in my coffees.”

“Then why is it that?”

“Because I’m picky about how much milk I put in my coffee.” Keith said nonchalantly as he looked down at his menu.

That was it?

“That was it?” Lance repeated his thought out loud. “You’re just picky about how much milk is in your coffee.” He watched as Keith slowly nodded his head, seemingly reading something he found interesting to eat.

“What about the gluten free thing with the pizza last night? Do you really buy into that gluten diet bs?” Lance asked. He had been wanting to ask that last night as well.

“For losing weight, no, but I have celiac. So, yes.” Keith replied plainly.

Lance nodded with a light “Ah” in understanding.

The conversation quickly ended there, with Lance’s mind still in a whirl. Something it shouldn’t be doing but did. Why did Keith seem okay with him being a blind date? Maybe he was trying to keep his cool like he was? Why did his heart flip like it was one of those divers that try to do as many flips they can before they hit the water?

Lance rolled his head and shoulders and grabbed his phone from his pocket. Unlocking it, he had no new message from Pidge. She didn’t have class this afternoon and, knowing her, she had all of her work for the next week done.

“Hey Keith…?”

“Mm?” He hummed, his eyes still ever scanning. When was he gonna be done reading?

“Aside from last night, you wouldn’t have happened to talk to Pidge, have you?” Lance asked as he looked at his phone, slowly making his way to her contact information.

“Ever since my schedule was changed, we haven’t talked much aside from yesterday and when I can on Friday’s. Why?”

“Because she has nothing to do this afternoon and it’s strange that she hasn’t texted back yet, so without further adieu…” Lance then pressed the call button for Pidge’s number and waited. Suddenly, there was a very loud, very familiar ringtone sounding off not too far from them.

Keith and Lance perked up and looked around and found two people sitting at a table just a few away from their’s, scuffling around as one of their phones was going off. They looked at each other knowingly. The person answered their phone just as Pidge answered.

“H-Hey! Lance, Lance the man! What’s up?” She stuttered on the other line.

“We see you and Hunk over there.” He said outright.

“Uhh...Over...Over where? I’m at my studio apartm—”

“You’re wearing the Cher wig we stole from that Halloween frat party Delta Capa had and Hunk is wearing that blond wig that looks like a wanna-be metal head from the 90’s.”

The two people Keith and Lance watched froze and slowly turned to look back at them. They sheepishly waved at them.

“You sneaky little-!”

Keith grabbed Lance’s phone. “Shiro was in on this, wasn’t he?”

“...maaaybe…”

Keith huffed and handed Lance his phone back before hiding his quickly blushing face into his hands.

“Look, Lance, we can explain-“

“ Bip bip bip! Hunk. Pidge. We are so talking after this.”

“Wait, after this? You’re gonna keep-?”

“I’m here, we ordered our drinks, might as well take the opportunity to eat while we can.” Lance said quickly. Keith peeked up at Lance through his fingers, something Lance did not miss, but kept going. 

“I’m calling you both again tonight while Keith practically murders his brother for this...right?” Keith nodded vigorously. “So if you’ve already paid, then go somewhere else!”

“Righto!” Pidge quickly said before ending the call. The two watched as Hunk and Pidge got up and made their way out.

As soon as they were out the door, the two of them sighed. Keith rubbed his face trying to wash the red off his cheeks and Lance ran his fingers through his hair as he sunk into his chair, their attention now on the table.

Silence washed over them, not moving to make a move to leave or to say anything to one another. They just sat there, listening to the people chatting and the milk steamers screaming and  Zedd’s Stay playing quietly in the background.

Lance started to chuckle. Keith looked up at him over his fingertips and questioned why he was suddenly laughing.

“I cannot believe they did that…” He muttered as his laugh steadily grew. “And your brother even got in on it!”

“My brother blackmailed me into doing this…” Keith groaned out, only to chuckle a little. Lance’s laugh was turning out to be a bit contagious. Then again, the situation was turning out to be pretty funny.

“He blackmailed you?” Lance chuckled.

Keith chuckled with a nod and a shrug. “It worked.”

“Siblings, man…”

Malocoti then came walking back, tray perfectly balanced in her hand with their drinks. After setting them down, she put back on her soft smile. “Are you ready to order?”

Keith and Lance looked at each other, almost like they were having a silent conversation.

Lance picked up his menu and held it out to the waiting woman. “Might as well, right?”

Keith stared at Lance, in disbelief that he actually was staying. But now Keith had his chance to leave. Pretend this didn’t happen. Pretend that his brother and his friend didn’t set them up on a blind date with Lance and go back to how they were. Just two people who use to kinda know each other in school. Just two people who see each other at work every Friday. Just...two people who live across from each other...strangers.

Shiro’s voice popped into Keith’s head.  _ “So I’m gonna ask you again, do you wanna go on this blind date?” _

Keith took a deep breath and nodded. “Yeah.” Keith shrugged,  held out his own menu to their waitress and smiled at Lance. “Why not?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Malocoti is from the Voltron comics. Briefly in issue 3, but I slapped her in anyways for shits and giggles. If you're a Lance lover, you'll love this issue.
> 
> If you haven’t read the comics, you can read them for free [here](http://readcomiconline.to/Comic/Voltron-Legendary-Defender/Issue-1?id=74588), starting with issue 1! And if you liked this chapter and/or this story, give it a kudo and constructive comments are always appreciated!
> 
> Song: Stay by Zedd. I think this fit just enough to match how these two are acting around each other during this chapter.
> 
> Ice Breaker –
> 
> 2 oz ( 60 ml ) tequila  
> 1 dash of triple sec  
> 1 dash of grenadine  
> 2 oz ( 60 ml ) of grapefruit juice
> 
> In a shaker filled with ice, add tequila, triple sec, grenadine and grapefruit juice and shake well. Strain into a wine glass. ( Optional ) Garnish with a fresh orange slice.  
> Drink responsibly!


	8. Night and Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time flies when you’re having fun and learning about one another. As days turn to weeks, then months, Keith learns changes and normal human emotions aren’t as bad as he thought. And Lance? Well...it’s complicated, but you gotta learn to go with the flow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry this is so late! So, um...funny story. As I was writing the layout for this, I somehow totally forgot that their timeline started in the middle of winter! So this kinda became a cute filler chapter, but still has some progressive plot….it actually saved me from having to write more chapters than needed. So double win!! And it’s so...freaking...LONG. 30 pages long, to be exact. I literally only finished this a few days ago because wow, I didn’t realize how much I still had to cover!
> 
> This is the unedited version because I really needed this posted BEFORE December and 2017 was over due to the Christmas twist. I'll come back later next year ( HA ) and update this to the edited version.
> 
> This kinda fits for December because I made sure to add a cute little Christmas that I hope you guys love! I loved writing it, that’s for sure!
> 
> Also, I do want to add one last thing: I’m no longer updating every second Thursday. Personal life and stress has been getting in the way of writing, which is one reason why this came out so late, so until I get my personal life and my stress under control, I’ll be updating this when I can.
> 
> Happy Holidays and Happy New Years guys!! See you with chapter 9 in the next year!

**Chapter Eight: Night and Day**

 

 

Keith walked into his apartment after his shift with a long groan. He was tired, but not as stressed as he usual was. His afternoon went better than he thought despite being tricked into a blind date with Lance. It turned out that Lance and him had a lot to talk about after Keith was kicked out after school. Maybe not so much about each other, but certainly about what happened after he and Shiro were gone. According to Lance, they were all compared to Keith, as if he were some amazing musical genius. That didn’t sit well with him...and it certainly didn’t seem to sit well with Lance either with how he acted and how quickly he changed the subject. Aside from that, Iverson loved to bitch about what an arrogant shit Keith was.

He had learned that Lance had siblings as well, but he was the second oldest out of five kids. Keith offhandedly couldn’t imagine if he could handle more siblings that were like him and Shiro. They had swapped stories about what they had to deal with as kids with their siblings. Like how Keith was able to convince Shiro that ghosts were real and locked him in his own closet, when it was actually just a broomstick that was over the doors, jammed behind his desk and dresser. Keith was grounded and got payback tenfold. It made him shudder to this day. Lance told him a few stories of how his siblings got him when he was young, like how Jess told him their parents had eaten all his candy for Halloween when Jess just hid it from him, or how Markus thought it was funny to put bleach in his shower hair products one year.

“I looked like a fuckboy!” Lance had cried out with a mouthful peanut butter and jelly french toast.

All day Keith did nothing but imagine Lance with blonde hair, making him stand out like a sore thumb and showing off those blue eyes of his. At times the image made him laugh, but he also caught himself in his thoughts, like how blue that blonde hair would make his eyes look. It would make him blush or smile just enough for Matt or Coran to notice.

Setting his helmet on the half wall the separates his entryway and his small but cozy kitchen as he made his way to his couch. Setting his bag down, he dug out his clothes that he wore on his blind date with Lance. They still smelled of his collonge, coffee and the winter air, making it even seep somewhat into the fabrics of his bag.

He took a step towards his bathroom when he stopped and looked out his sliding patio door, trying to see if there was a light on, if the window was open, slightly hoping that Lance was just getting home to start playing the piano before either of them went to bed.

Nothing. The window wasn’t open and the light wasn’t on.

Keith bit his lip and shook his head. It may have been a blind date, and a date none the less, but neither really treated it as such. They had talked as if they were two close friends from high school just catching up on the times, despite there really been no times had between them.

But he still felt disappointed. Not just that there was no music playing, but the fact that after their date, he had this unconscious want of Lance sitting there by the window playing the piano as soon as he got home. Like something out of a romance novel.

Keith walked away from the door and to his bathroom for a now much needed shower, tossing his clothes in the hamper. He needed to wash away the day and the thoughts that plagued him. He needed out of his thoughts before they wondered too far. Before he started thinking of this being another time he screwed up his dating life and call off dating altogether.

After a long shower of switching between hot and cold from awful plumbing, Keith walked out and into his room. Towel loosely wrapped around his waist and his hands drying his hair, he shivered. His shower ended cold and his heating wasn’t always the best.

The delightful thought of slipping in warm pajamas and a comfy bed to curl in was cut short at the sound of piano music. Lance was playing Clair de Lune cheerily, he could tell. Meaning Lance must has been very happy, at least at the moment.

Keith let himself smile a bit. Yeah...maybe dates aren’t so bad after all?

 

\---

 

“I still hate dating.” Keith growled at Shiro. The following Friday during his break, when Keith was actually able to have a real conversation with his brother, he laid into him.

“Did you really hate it that much?” Shiro asked as he looked over his band’s set list for the night.

“I- Yes!” Keith practically squeaked with a flail.

Shiro only glanced at him for Keith to start to fidget. “No…?” Keith drawled as his voice cracked.

Shiro let the set list fall into his lap as he crossed his arms, raising a questioning eyebrow. Keith crossed his own arms tightly and looked away with puffed, red cheeks. “...maybe…” He muttered, his voice sounding as small as he felt.

“Keith…” Shiro sighed, running his hand over his face and into his hair in exasperation.

“Okay! Fine! I admit it was great! I had fun despite the fact that we just stuffed our faces almost the entire time after we found out _you_ and practically everyone else we know set us up on a blind date!” Keith rambled.

“But the more you thought about it, the less great it was?” Shiro asked.

Keith sighed, his temper deflating quickly, and leaned against the dressing table his brother sat at. It was enough of a response for Shiro and he knew it. He didn’t handle change well and this? This was certainly a big change, if not current, then a possible big change.

“It just...moved too fast.” He finally admitted. He couldn’t believe how quiet and vulnerable his voice sounded. Was that really him?

Shiro stared at his brother for a moment, taking in his stance. Lance knew who Keith was the moment they saw each other, but Keith? He wasn’t always good at remembering names to faces. “I’m sorry, Keith. I didn’t mean to push it. None of us did...but you have been fawning over him for the past month.”

“So I can’t have a crush and not act on it?” Keith questioned.

“Ever?”

“I don’t know, Takashi! I’m kinda new to this, so you tell me!” He was exasperated. This entire week has been him going back and forth between his head and heart, about the good and the bad of that so called date. If there was anything he was sure of was the fact that he loved to hear Lance sing. He loved how he did his act to make the music feel more alive by just the subtle movements and hand gestures. And to add the fact that he learned he was the pianist that had been playing in the building next to his was a bonus.

Keith had fallen for Lance’s voice, for his musical talent and that was it. It wasn’t until recently that they had started to get to actually know each other. Their blind date had only let each other get an oh so small glimpse at who they were outside the lounge. And that scared him the most. He didn’t have any other substantial reason to be crushing on Lance.

“Well...” Shiro started. He opened his mouth to continue his thought just as there was a knock at the door. Both looked to the door. Shiro glanced between his brother and the door, debating what was a more important issue. “One moment.” He called out. Standing up from his chair, he sighed and smiled at his brother, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Listen Keith… Just ‘cause it was a blind date, doesn’t mean that it has to be called a blind date, you know. It was just you two being set up by some friends. You two are going to be seeing each other more often, so we thought it was certainly one way to get you two to talk like normal people without arguing.”

Keith sighed. “I don’t know…”

“Well, think of that blind date as a one time trial date that was to see if you two were able to get along without fighting.” Shiro said with a smile as he made his way to the door.

His bandmates were at the door, having come later than him since Shiro had finished up work earlier. Knowing that they had some last minute practice to do, Keith gave them a farewell and left.

A one time trial date. No real attachments - just seeing if they could get along. He could live with calling it that. Lance was expecting to be going out with a girl anyways, so maybe that was how he was seeing it, too? Or, maybe he just saw it as an opportunity to just hang out?

Keith stopped at the door between the storage area for the bar and the bar in the lounge. The single thought kept him from walking through the door, knowing Lance was going to be on stage any second.

What if Lance didn’t see it as just some get together? Keith has been listening to him play his piano from across the alley for over half a year now, to the point where he could tell if he was having a good or bad day. And lately, his music has sounded very happy, but that didn’t mean that it was because of him. It didn’t mean that it was because of the blind date that they were set up on. It could have been that Lance has been having some very good days lately. It could mean that he may have met someone who actually met what he imagined Keith should have looked like when they met up?

“Are you gonna just stand there and wait for the door to magically open by itself or are you gonna push it open?”

Startled, Keith turned to see Pidge standing there, arms crossed and clearly amused at what she was seeing.

“How long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough to know for certain that door isn’t an automatic door, thanks to you.” She remarked. Keith looked between her and the door. Was he standing there longer than he thought? Was he that nervous? “If you want to see Lance perform, you might want to get out there right about now. I’m sure he’d _love_ to know you’re watching.” She chuckled a bit.

Keith scoffed and shook his head. “Don’t set the stage on fire. Matt will kill you.” He said as he walked through the door as if to prove a point, unsure if it was to her or himself.

The air then seemed staggering. Not just with the slight smell of tobacco smoke in the air, but the knowing that Lance was going to be there on the stage in less than a minute. That maybe he would see him working the bar as he performed, and it caused a knot to form in his throat. Nervousness. The nervousness that he was overthinking this, of the change that will form between them for better or worse - he didn’t know.

Keith got to work, checking up on Matt and the co-worker he was left to while on break. Matt was slicing some limes when he smiled at Keith and chuckled. “Everything alright now that you talked to Takashi?”

“Sort of…” Keith muttered, trying to keep his attention on the customers.

“I see.” Matt replied as he switched from limes to lemons. “Just so you know, Lance called Pidge yesterday and flipped out on her.”

“He did?”

“Ooooh yeah. And he apparently confronted Hunk before calling her.”

Keith chuckled. “I’m sure Lance went easy on Hunk. And I know he wasn’t as brutal with Pidge as she’s letting on.”

“Of course she made it worse than it actually was. She may not act like it all the time, but she can be a drama queen if she wants to be.” Matt laughed.

“Boy, we would know.” Keith laughed with the memory of when they were kids. Her game console had suddenly turned off during a battle between the two of them and Pidge had lost it. Like it was the end of games until the end of time. Turned out their then kitten had just decided to crawl through the cords and unplug the console from the wall. Keith and Matt teased her for it for a little while.

The white lights on the stage then came on and grabbed everyone’s attention. Lance stood there at the front of the stage in a white button up with the sleeves rolled up, his hair slicked back with gel. And maybe it was just Keith being overly observant from his debacle between his head and heart, but he swears up and down that Lance might have lip gloss on. When his eyes looked up again, there was Lance, staring right back at him. Those soft yet piercing blue eyes pinning him down so hard that Keith almost missed the customer that sat down in front of him.

Lance always scanned the crowd before every performance now, making sure most eyes were on him, but almost as if he were looking for something. Tonight, his eyes had only briefly looked over the lounge and never went any farther than the bar, no farther than Keith. He smiled when he knew he had all the attention that he wanted. Keith’s head screamed at him while his heart raced and cheeks flushed.

He ducked his head away and focused on the customer in front of him. It was the same man who had been coming in every Friday the past month and a half. Pale skin, always in a luxurious looking suit, hair neatly groomed brown with too much gel, and this time Keith got a closer look at those eyes.

Red. They were as red as blood on rust. With the white light from the stage, they practically glowed. And those eyes never left the stage except to order a drink.

The air around him slowly grew eerie as Lance moved about on stage. It unearned him. Forget being nervous about being around Lance, this man made Lance look like a saint. And the way he stared at Lance…

Keith glanced between Lance, this man, and making the man’s drink as fast as possible. The sooner he got away from this man the better. He sat the drink down, smiled a fake smile that he used with most of his customers and gave the price.

Music started to play as the man handed Keith his money. As Keith handed it off to Matt for the register, Lance started to sing.

“ _I’ll have a Blue Christmas without you~_ ”

Matt and Keith froze and stared at Lance like he had lost his mind.

“Does...Does he know Christmas isn’t for another two weeks?” Keith asked, perplexed as to why Lance was singing Christmas music now.

Matt laughed and shrugged, handing Keith the man’s change. “Lance loves the holidays. And it’s December! It fits and everyone is singing them right about now.”

Keith handed the man his change and then looked back to the stage. Lance’s eyes landed on Keith and he smirked.

“ _I’ll be so blue just thinking about you~_ ”

He shook his head at the performer in both denial and at the fact that he was singing Christmas music so early in his book. Keith always thought the best time to sing Christmas music was on Christmas with family and friends. That’s what his family does. Well, did, at least.

“ _Decorations of red on a green Christmas tree._

 _Won’t be the same dear, if you’re not here with me~!_ ”

Lance’s smirk widened with a wink at Keith, as if he were trying to sing to him. Keith’s cheeks flushed and his stomach flipped.

No. _No_. That was not okay! It wasn’t okay for Lance to look as handsome as he does and it’s certainly not okay for him to look at him like that! Lance singing wasn’t okay because he loved his voice. Singing a Christmas song on mic night and he had the audacity to look at Keith as if he were singing that song to him.

Keith took a deep breath. Work. He needed to focus on work and training Matt.

**Hours Later**

The night went by slow. Despite his many attempts to keep Lance out of his mind, even long after Lance had walked off stage, he’d pop up. Keith sighed through his nose as he sat at the light with his apartment building in sight, right next to Lance’s. Where their apartments were straight across from each other. Where Keith’s small balcony, if that, was close enough to the fire escape that was in front of Lance’s apartment window that he could practically jump the distance between them.

Keith finally pulled into the shared garage and into his parking spot. It was just as cold in the garage as it was outside, if not colder. Gathering his things, he walked into the entryway of the building. He didn’t have to wait long for the elevator before he slipped off his helmet. It was refreshingly warmer inside. As he rode the short ride to his floor, he both hoped and didn’t hope that Lance would be awake playing his piano. Scenario ran through his head - what ifs.

A chime ran from his phone, alerting him that he had a text. It was probably Shiro, berating him for once again ditching him at the lounge without continuing their earlier conversation or saying goodbye. What was Keith, 5?

Lance The Great, his phone read.

Keith stopped breathing. It was like Lance just wouldn’t leave him alone even though they hadn’t talked all day. They hadn’t really talked since they went on the blind date. He finally opened up the text to read it after a clear moment of hesitation.

2:37 Lance The Great: I seen you pull into the garage. Get changed out of your tobacco ridden uniform and go out onto your balcony.

Panic.

That was all he felt. Hadn’t they seen enough of each other already? He quickly texted back.

2:38 Me: Why can’t it be over text?

The ding from his phone matched the ding from the elevator. His apartment was right next to it, so he took his time standing in front of his door, as he read the next text.

2:39 Lance The Great: Nope. It’s gotta be mano-e-mano, brohime.

Keith’s body reacted before he could register his own thought and swiftly hit his forehead onto his door. It was painful, but he reveled in it for a moment as a way to keep his mind of this annoyance that was new blowing up his phone. Well, it wasn’t completely annoying...it wasn’t Lance’s fault, really. Just Keith’s mind making up situations that probably weren’t there, he reminded himself.

Taking the time to open his door and literally drop everything in the entryway, Keith texted back.

2:40 Me: It’s the middle of winter. It’s cold and it’s almost 3AM. I’m not coming out.

He walked over to his sliding door and moved the curtain. There, across the way, sat Lance on the fire escape landing with a heavy looking dark blue coat under a blanket, a heater that the cord running inside through the window, a steaming mug of...something, and a black beanie the snuggly covered his ears. Lance had been staring at his balcony, judging from how quickly Lance noticed him and gave a bright smile and a wave. his cheeks and nose looked a bit red from the cold.

Keith watched him for a moment, seeing Lance wave at him to come outside. He just stared blankly at him for a moment. Looking inside for a moment, he debated actually going out there. Glancing back, Lance seemed patient, but he knew he must have been cold off his ass. A heater alone could only do so much. So if it would Lance to get inside before the idiot caught a cold...

With a defeated sigh, he silently held up a finger as a signal for Lance to wait. There was a near miss moment of shock that flashed across his face before he smiled again, lifting a hand with a thumbs up.

Keith quickly changed out of his uniform and into some already worn warm clothes from earlier in the week. Grabbing the heavy coat her just wore and one of his many beanies at random to place snuggly on his head, Keith flipped the light to his balcony on and walked outside.

“Aren’t you cold?” he asked as a hard shiver rode up his spine from the quick change in temperature.

Lance shrugged. “Could be worse.” He took a quick sip of his drink. “Could be a blizzard.”

Point taken. “But still, why now?”

“Because I’m probably not going to see you this weekend and sometimes texting doesn’t get the message across.”

“Couldn’t have waited until tomorrow to just, I don’t know, call me on my cell rather than call me outside onto my balcony?”

“I could have, but because of your schedule and not knowing if you would be busy, I didn’t want to interrupt.”

‘That was awfully considerate of him…’ Keith thought.

“Not to mention, I honestly thought I’d feel less awkward doing this in person than over the phone…”

Shoving his hands into his coat pockets, he took a seat at the small table he had out there. “What did you want to tell me Lance?” He asked, getting straight to the point after his interrogation.

“Right, so…” Lance fidgeted with his mug for a moment. “You wanna actually hang out sometime?”

Keith blinked. “Like a date again?” He asked, rather startled by not only the question Lance asked him, but the fleeting first thought was that Lance was asking him out of his own accord.

“No no!” Lance panicked, waving a hand around as emphasis. “Just as friends!” Lance sat his mug down on the window sill and moved closer to the railing to lean on it. “Don’t get me wrong, that date was uncalled for, but you gotta admit it was fun.”

“It was, but how-?”

“So I was wondering if tomorrow night, since you switched shifts for Todd, you wanted to come do game night with Hunk, Pidge, Matt and I?” Lance said sheepishly.

“Matt is going?” He vaguely remembered Matt saying something about going out somewhere tomorrow since it was his day off...

“Yeah. We all talked about it and, since Pidge and Hunk feel bad for tricking us, they wanted to invite you to our game night at Hunk’s. He is an awesome cook, so it’ll be free food!”

“Just a get together with everyone else?” Keith asked hesitantly.

“Just a get together!” Lance beamed.

Just a get together with not just Lance, but also Hunk, Pidge and Matt. It wasn’t going to be just the two of them this time and they weren’t being set up or spied on. It seemed that Keith had certainly done some over thinking, but it also seemed to him that Lance thought of the same way Shiro put it: a trial date. Something not sistantual, but something that at least gave them a head start on becoming friends. That meant that Keith could finally breathe.

It wasn’t a date, it was a trial.

He wasn’t being invited on a date, he was being invited to hang out with friends and a potential friend.

“What time?”

With just that, Lance whooped and hollered as quietly as possible. Given the needed information, as well as the possible car ride from Lance if it started (“My heater doesn’t work, but I did buy this to maybe help!” He said, pointing to the heater he had sitting outside.), Keith was more than happy to go back inside.

Slipping his jacket off and melting at the heat of his flat compared to the dark coldness of the alley, Keith looked back outside to see Lance grinning practically ear to ear. He shuffled about bringing everything from the fire escape, all while trying not to slip on the now melted snow that was where the heater sat.

As Lance finished up and was slipping into his apartment, their eyes met again. Out of the times it happened in just the past some odd hours, this one felt less tense. Less like he was about to throw up over how nervous those blue eyes made him feel. When Lance smiled at him, he couldn’t keep down the edges of his lips to return the smile.

He quickly straightened himself and turned away from his balcony door. Things were settled between them for the most part. The only thing left now was a warm shower to chase away the coldness of his skin and piano music to help him sleep.

 

\---

 

This was the first time in a very long time, since maybe high school and that is a very, very big maybe, that Keith had really hung out with friends. He couldn’t count the times he spent hanging out with friends at their houses on one hand either. It only happened once or twice.

Not that he really had friends in school to begin with, but it counted, right?

Keith and Lance stood outside of Hunk’s apartment door, waiting for someone to open it up. Amazingly, they were early as Lance’s car decided to spring to life. It was quite the sight to see Lance nearly bust out into tears when his car started. And, true to his word, the heater he had was placed in the backseat of his car. Keith was given full control of the temperature so that the didn’t die from overheating in the middle of winter.

The car ride itself was awkward and a bit quiet. Both weren’t sure how to really start a conversation that didn’t involve forced communication or blunt, physical force into each other.

The music was turned down low. A mix of rock, pop, some classical and a Christmas jingle sprinkled in from the playlist on Lance’s small shuffle plugged into the AUX.

“How did you know I gave up my shift for Todd?” Keith questioned when they pulled out of Lance’s shared garage.

“Pidge told me because Matt told her.” After that, it was fairly quiet between them. They did talk here and there, of course. It was mostly Keith asking Lance about this game night of theirs. It seemed to be quite the party, which made him a bit nervous…

As they stood waiting for the door to open, Keith fidgeted. Rubbing his pointer finger and thumb together to help calm him down. It wasn’t a party, just a get together.

It isn’t a party, it’s a get together!

The door swung open to reveal Hunk with a bright yellow apron on.

“Holy crow, you’re early!” Hunk exclaimed, actually shocked that Lance was there before the Holt siblings.

“The smell of your food carried us here~” Lance said dreamily.

Keith leaned in a bit and sniffed the air a couple times. He knew that meaty smell anywhere! “Burgers?”

“Yep! Bison burgers with roasted garlic mayo, fresh  spicy fried onions, butter lettuce and tomato on a gluten free bun made by yours truly!” Hunk said proudly as he stood to the side and let his two guests into his abode. “Served with a side of homemade french fries and soda.”

Keith had never had Hunk’s cooking, but he had heard of it. And right now the smell alone was making his mouth water. He was glad he hadn’t eaten before they left.

Lance dropped his bag at the end of the couch and sat down. “No special cocktail?”

Hunk shook his head. “Nope. You’re driving, Keith isn’t much of a drinker, and there’s Matt.”

“Right. Good point.” Lance said quickly at the mention of Matt.

“What about Matt?” Keith asked.

“Because Pidge is coming and is an underage college student who loves to drink even if her brother is present. Matt will kill us if we even have a drop of it around her.” Lance clarified.

“We have no alcohol tonight because we fear for our lives.” Hunk added as he walked back to the kitchen.

“Sooo….” Keith looked around, still standing by the front door. “Now what?”

“Now,” Lance started, patting the couch seat beside him. “we sit, we all talk, watch TV and drool over the smell of the food until the nerds show up!”

Keith stared at the spot Lance’s hand sat. He could sit that close, and make it seem like there was something when there wasn’t for Lance. Or he could sit at the far end and make it look like he doesn’t like Lance.

Casual. Nothing weird, just casual. Just BE casual.

So Keith casually put his bag down, not by Lance’s, and casually plopped down, not quite by Lance.

“Since we’re the first one’s here, we get to pick what to watch until the gremlins get here. And by we, I mean I.” Lance said slyly, grabbing the remote off the coffee table and flipping the TV on.

“Lance, you and Keith got here together. You gotta agree what to watch _together_.” Hunk called out as Lance groaned out a protest. “Keith, what do you wanna drink?”

“Um...root beer?” Hunk just smiled and gave him a thumbs up. “What, uh...What did you plan on watching?

“Have you heard of a show-”

“Oh no - Lance please…” Hunk whined just loud enough for Keith to hear.

“-called Supernatural?”

“Heard of but haven’t watched.”

Lance once again showed the face of utter and complete shock. As if the notion of just hearing about it but not seeing it had greatly offended him in the worst possible way. Keith felt himself shrink and glanced between the ever so shocked Lance and Hunk with his head in his hands as he leaned over the counter.

“You. Me. Possibly everyone else. Netflix. Supernatural. Now.”

**Hours Later**

“Think they’ll be mad that we’re late?” Matt asked as they walked up to Hunk’s door.

“Nah, Lance is always late, so I doubt Hunk’ll be mad at us.” Pidge shrugged as she knocked on the door.

When the door opened up, Hunk stood there with his apron still on and a rather excited look on his face. The sound of the TV was up high, and the show they all dreaded watching was on.

“Hey guys!”

Pidge stared at Hunk. “You caved to Lance and watched Supernatural, didn’t you?”

“What?” Hunk looked behind him and then back at the siblings. “Actually, no, I didn’t.” He continued happily, moving out of the way for Pidge and Matt to walk in.

There on the couch, both smack dab in the middle of the couch, leaning close to each other as they watched Supernatural, was Lance and Keith. Being civil. Actually civil.

“They didn’t even show the face of the Wendigo!” Keith then shouted.

“Yes they do!”

“Okay, barely!”

“Whatever, now sush! Third episode is starting!”

...civil for a little while, at least…

But the night passed relatively well. It was both Matt and Keith’s first time going to one of their games nights. Pidge had brought over Cards Against Humanity, to which there was no protest to. It was a simple game, but they all had to help Keith out a few times before he could get a hold of the game, especially when he was Card Tsar.

It didn’t surprise them at all when Lance and Keith’s bickering continued even after the game was over. Lance accused Keith of cheating from knowing what cards were his. Keith, of course, wasn’t pleased to be accused of such a thing. He always played fair, but that didn’t mean that he didn’t take a cheap shot at Lance when he had the chance.

Even after the goodbyes, Lance and Keith bickered, but it was less harsh than when they were with the others. And by the time they were completely alone in the car, the makeshift heater running and the music once again turned down low, they were quiet. Not that it wasn’t uncomfortable or awkward, but just...pleasantly content. In Keith’s mind, it was nice to just talk to Lance, even when they had their spats -even the not so playful ones.

As they stopped at a light on their way to their apartment buildings, Lance spoke up.

“Do you have Christmas off, by chance?”

Caught off guard by the question, Keith’s eyes bulged out of his head. “What?” Was all he could manage out.

Lance glanced at Keith before the light turned green and started driving. “I asked if you have Christmas off.”

Keith shifted in his seat and pulled his coat closer, turning his attention from Lance to the window to the scenery that blew by outside. “I do, actually. The LC is closed on Christmas eve as well.” Keith explained. He seen Lance’s head nod slowly as he kept his eyes diligently on the road. “I’m guessing winter break starts for you guys soon, doesn’t it?”

Another nod.

“Yep! Heading home for the holidays and what not.” He mused. “I’m guessing you and Shiro will be heading home then, too, right?”

Keith just chucked dryly. “Nah. I’ll be home by myself. He and our parents have work.”

“So you’ll be home alone?”

“Yep.”

“Didn’t Pidge and Matt’s family invite you for the holidays? I mean, they do celebrate Christmas and Hanukkah because their mom is Jewish and their dad is Catholic, so I guess I just kinda thought it was something they’d do?” Lance asked curiously.

“Yeah they did, but I turned them down. I don’t want to be the odd man out.” Keith shrugged. “They’ve offered before, but I’ve always turned them down.”

“How long have you not celebrated with your family?”

“Since I got kicked out of school, Lance.” Keith huffed.

It was a moment before he saw Lance slowly nod in his peripheral, like he was trying to absorb and process the information. There was a lapse in silence  before Lance spoke again.

“Do you-”

“I’m fine Lance.” Keith interrupted dryly.

There was another lapse in silence where the low music was suddenly seemed too loud.

“This isn’t the first time you guys didn’t get together for Christmas?” Lance asked, just when Keith thought they were done talking until they reached their buildings.

“Work is work, Lance. They have pretty intensive jobs. Shiro is lucky enough that he can perform every Friday night as it is.” Keith said rather bitterly.

“Okay, okay! I’m sorry! Didn’t know that I was intruding on another touchy subject.” Lance had said in his defence. The tone made Keith shrink back a little. He didn’t mean to take it out on Lance, nor did he mean for it to sound as hard as it was. It wasn’t either of their faults that Keith’s family were now busy adults…

Just when Keith made a few steps forward in getting along with Lance, he took more than a few steps back. Keith bit his lip and shited his eyes from the window to Lance. He watched the road looking a bit distressed and irritated - either at him or at himself.

Lance pulled into his covered parking spot outside his building minutes later. The air around them the rest of the ride seemed almost tense as the boys thought in their own little worlds. Keith helped Lance get the heater out of his car before giving him a small smile to leave.

“I-Wait.” Lance called out, grabbing Keith’s wrist.

Keith sighed inwardly. He just wanted to get home and fall asleep to the only sound he felt like hearing from Lance after all his badgering today.

“What?”

“Do you...like cats?” Lance asked sheepishly. Keith was going to make himself believe that the pink he saw on Lance’s cheeks were from the cold.

“Whhhy?”

“Just answer my question - and honestly, please.” Lance frowned, letting Keith’s wrist go and leaving a quickly fading heat that he honestly didn’t want to fade.

“Fine. Yeah, I do.”

“And, I’m just making a guess here because of your bike, jacket and your boots, do you like the color red?” Keith’s own cheeks became red after Lance’s eyes scanned him up and down. That, he could admit, wasn’t just from the cold.

“Um...It’s my favorite color…?”

“Mhm, mhm.” He hummed. “Okay! Well, have a nice night mullet!” Lance said with a smile as he lifted up his heater and headed to the entrance of his building.

“Wait, why were you asking me those-?”

“You’ll have to wait and find out~!” Lance called out mischievously as he used his hip to open the door. “Adios!”

“I thought you didn’t speak Spanish?” Keith teased. He couldn’t help the smile as Lance shook his head.

“HA HA. Funny mullet.”

 

\---

 

Days later, Keith had run into Lance as he was packing his car to go home for Christmas break. Keith had been out shopping for his essentials when he seen him. He parked his bike just behind Lance’s run down excuse of a car and turned it off.

“There is no way you have that big of a family…” Keith mused as he leaned on the handles of his bike, examining the sheer amount of presents he had stuffed in his trunk and partly in the back seat.

“You have no idea!” Lance laughed as he lifted his suitcase into the part of his back seat that wasn’t covered with presents. “I have family coming from Cuba this year and I had to get them at least one thing each - even if they are simple things.”

“I guess that’s a lot of family then…” Keith felt a little envious as he looked at the amount and the sizes of the presents. Keith had already given Shiro his gift, albeit it was a tie to wear during his performances at the lounge, and sent his gifts to his parents.

Lance shut the door and gave a trumphunt laugh. “All done! I just have one last thing to do.” He opened the passenger door and grabbed a small white gift bag next to his heater. It was stuffed with red tissue paper and a big red bow that sat between where the strings were attached to the bag. It looked rather full, too…

Keith just stared at the gift, unsure of how to accept it.

“Just take it and say ‘Thank you’.” Lance said monotonously as he shoved the gift into Keith’s hands.

“Um...thank you.” As he held the gift, he noticed it was a bit heavy. Curious, Keith began to reach in the bag.

“No!!” Lance shouted, reaching out to stop him, but Keith’s hand jumped out and away from the bag before it could slip in.

“What? Why?” It’s a present! He wasn’t supposed to open it yet?

“Not yet! I mean, there is a card that you need to look at - the white thing in there.” Lance leaned over Keith to point into the bag. When he looked, sure enough, it was there.

“This heavy bag is for a card?”

“No, it’s just part of the gift. You gotta open it on Christmas, but you need to read the card first on Christmas eve.” Lance instructed.

“Why?” He was skeptical about what Lance was up to. There were times where he found Lance had messed around with some of the staff at the lounge - not that they minded, they had all come to like him, but Keith found it rather hindering...and a little endearing.

“Well, a present wouldn’t be a surprise if it meant telling you what it is, now would it?” He said as sly grin curled Lance’s lips in a way that made Keith wanna punch him and kiss him.

Wait.

As Keith’s mind processed that thought and feeling while staring at the present Lance got him, Lance pulled away and shuttered a bit. “Anyway, I’m cold and I need to get going - that is...as soon as you move and I can get the car to start…”

“Oh, right…” Keith muttered. He placed the gift between his legs before walking his bike back and out of the way for Lance to pull his car out.

Lance smiled at him and hopped in his car. After a few tries, the car finally roared to life,. Pulling up next to Keith’s bike, Lance rolled down his window and pointed at him. “No peeking, mullet!”

Keith chuckled and swatted at his hand. “Just go!” He watched him roll up his window, down the alley and out onto the road before the cold hit him and sent a shudder through his body. Slipping the small bag around his wrist, he hopped off his bike and opted for just pushing his bike into the garage so he didn’t use up fuel for a small distance.

When he got into his apartment, helmet under his arm, heavy grocery bags in his hands and gift still around his wrist. After struggling with his bags to open the door, he unceremoniously dropped everything on the kitchen counter after quickly dashing to his kitchen to not drop anything onto the floor. A loud klink rang through his apartment from the begs he sat down - from the gift bag. His breath stilled at the sound. He knew it was a bit heavy but he didn’t think it would be something fragile.

He picked up the bag and just felt around to make sure nothing clinked around to show it broke. When he didn’t hear anything, he finally let out a sigh of relief. He didn’t know held held his breath for that long…

Putting it aside so he didn’t actually break it, he began to unpack and put away his groceries. Every now and then, however, he’d glimpse at the small white bag with a small red blow that was probably just stuck on there with cheap peel off tape.

The curiosity was killing him.

Why would Lance even get him anything? They didn’t know each other that well despite working together and...maybe talking over text during the day.

...and a small chat in the alley when he got home from work when Lance didn’t have school.

When Keith would get home when Lance was, they would end up sitting outside talking for a bit before the cold got to them. He would always be on his balcony and Lance on the fire escape with his heater and, to Keith found out, his favorite blue cat mug filled with hot tea.

As enjoyable as those are, Keith still didn’t see reason for Lance to get him a present. Did Lance see them as friends from the lack of times they’ve fought now?

Keith bit his lip as he stared intensely at the small and innocent package. Maybe it was a prank? No, Lance wouldn’t do something like that...well, he would, but Keith was giving him the benefit of the doubt.

That was it.

Curiosity killed.

Keith reached into the bag but stopped as his fingers brushed the tissue paper.

Don’t look at the gift. He said there was a card he had to read first, Keith reminded himself. But then again, Lance wasn’t here. He didn’t have to know that he opened it early, did he?

He huffed at his thoughts as he yanked his hand away, berating himself as he quickly put away the rest of his things. What was he, a kid peeking at presents his parents put under the tree? Please! He was an adult now.

...an adult who could technically do what he wanted…

With the last item in his hand, he glanced back at the teasing gift.

The card. _Just_ the card. That’s it. Nothing more. Lance didn’t have to know he didn’t open it on Christmas eve like he asked. Was that bad? Yes it was, but he felt like being a little childish. Something Lance made him feel like from time to time.

Something that felt strange at his age, but not wrong.

Keith reached into the bag specifically aiming for the card. With a deep breath, he pulled it out and slowly, hesitantly opened it. The card way thick and a little heavy itself. Did Lance put something in the card? Was the card the prank and the present real? He opened the envelope, flipped the card open and-

“ _I’ll be home for Christmas_

_You can plan on me_

_Please, have snow_

_And mistletoe_

_And presents on the tree_ ”

It was a music card. Lance got him a music card. It was...very much Lance.

**Keef -**

**If you don’t have a Skype, make one and video call me ( WITH YOUR CAMERA ON ) at 7:30 tomorrow. Don’t open your present until after you call me.**

**-Lancey Lance**

Keith read the little note Lance scribbled onto the card one more time. He really had this thought through, didn’t he?

He chuckled and sat the card down on the coffee table, opened to keep the music going. A little Christmas music was needed, he thought, as Keith sat down with a small smile and began finishing up his little projects before Christmas.

“ _I’ll be home for Christmas_

 _If only in my dreams~_ ”

 

\---

 

Christmas in the McClain household was a big deal. It was a big deal in the family all together. No matter what happened in the year, for bad or worse, they always made sure to end the year with a bang as a family. To put aside their issues for the sake of face and the kids. To enjoy each other’s company in case someone wouldn’t be there for following Christmas’s so there would be no regrets.

This year, some family from Cuba had come into town. Lance’s abuelita had always been talking on the phone to her cousin Juaneta ever since she moved from Cuba to the states. They always said they were going to get together somehow - either his grandmother go to Cuba or Juaneta come to America for a visit. But it never happened since the flights from here to there was so long. Now they were getting older and Juaneta’s health was deteriorating.

So this year’s Christmas in the McClain household was an _enormous_ deal.

Lance was more than happy to be coming home as soon as he was. He was also glad that Hunk moved up their game night so he, and Hunk as well, could leave for home just as Christmas break hit.

While Hunk was picked up by his parents so they could fly to Hawaii for Christmas with his family, where there were white sandy beaches and warm water rather than white cold snow and icy water, Lance was stuck at his home. Soon to be filled with many cousin’s from Florida and now from Cuba.

Hotel McClain Lance was calling it. Shared rooms and bathrooms. Not even in the shower would Lance have any alone time since his family was rude. This, in a way, worried him. He wasn’t sure if he would get a chance to do that skype call with Keith - if there was even going to be a skype call. The few days that had passed, Lance had managed to text him at least once a day, almost a reminder to not forget to read the card. It wasn’t until yesterday that Lance sent him a text about the card. About how he was supposed to read it today.

Lance sat in the family room with his family watching a Muppet Christmas Carol. The kids called it ancient because it was a VHS and not blu-ray, but they wanted to see it so badly, they had to go hunting for it in the basement before they could watch it. As Ebenezer walked with the big muppet of Christmas Past, Lance glanced at his phone.

Still no new messages. Not even on his skype. Not even an invite. And it was getting late - almost 8 and Keith should have been home hours ago. Normally, when Lance texted Keith, he’d respond within the minute or ten minutes. Thanks to Pidge’s knowledge of Keith’s schedule, Lance always made sure to text him when he wasn’t at work for quicker responses. He sighed and slipped his phone into his pocket, leaning against the arm of the couch to half watched the movie the kids were so interested in.

“Are you expecting someone to call you, little bro?”

Lance looked up at Jess, who had come home for the Holidays from her current trip to Holland.

“No.”

“I don’t buy that.” Her smile seemed to seep from her lips and into her voice. It was so sweet and so loud that everyone abandoned the movie and turned to look at him.

“Does Lancito have a girlfriend?” An older voice chirped out. Squeals and coo’s came from every girl and woman in hearing range while whoops and “good for you!”’s came from the men. The boys made gagging sounds.

“I-No. No! I don’t have a girlfriend! I don’t have an anything!” Lance protested in a panic.

“Are you sure? You seem pretty happy to me!”

“And you’ve been checking your phone all day.”

“Has estado enviando mensajes de texto con l a sonrisa más grande de los últimos días, también.” Lance turned around to see Juaneta standing in the dancing room, looking down at them from over the railing. She didn’t speak very much English by choice. She felt it was too hard, according to his lita.

“What?”

“She said you've been texting with the biggest smile of the last few days, too.” His cousin Tajo translated.

“Así que no mientas, Lancito. ¿conociste a una chica especial?”

“So don’t lie, Lancito. Did you meet a special girl?” He translated again.

“No, guys. I didn’t meet a special girl.” Lance said sternly, making sure to make eye contact with most of the people in the room to get the point across. And he wasn’t lying. He hadn’t met a special girl. He hadn’t met one since high school…

“Alright. Don’t tell us about this secret girl.” One relative teased grinning.

After that, he tried to actually watch the movie. Instead, he couldn’t get himself to pay attention now that he could feel and see out of the corner of his eyes the smiles his relatives through at him. With a groan, Lance stood up and left the room. He needed away from them for the moment. It wasn’t because he wasn’t enjoying their company, he greatly enjoyed it! He got to meet family he’d never met before and learn a little Spanish from them, but they weren’t his closest family. They weren’t his parents, his grandparents, his siblings…

He didn’t come out to everyone in his family…

Lance needed to think. Where could he go for alone time? The family room was taken up, the front living room was mostly tree and presents - off limits to all kids for tonight and tomorrow until it was time to open presents. But there were some adults - adultier adults - who stepped in there to get away from the kids. From the kitchen, everyone would be able to see and hear him and it was crowded with his mom and other female relatives. And the garage? The garage was where his dad and the other much older men of the family went to have man time. And his room? His siblings’ rooms? All had occupants in the as well.

Lance would normally have no problem floating about the groups of people in the house. He blended accordingly because he just got along with 99% of the family and world population - that was in his parents opinion of course. But sometimes he needed alone time. He needed to find a place where he could go and be alone for a moment and a place he could sit with his laptop when Keith maybe called.

Stepping outside onto the small front porch, he breathed in the crisp, cold air and pulled his arms into his chest. He should have grabbed a-

“Lance?” His mom called from the front door. “What are you doing out here? And without your coat?”

“Just some time to myself if all.” He chuckled with a smile, suppressing a shiver as best he could.

Samara tsked at him and grabbed some coats off the rack by the door. She slipped one on as she went outside to join her son and handed the other coat to him.

“More people in there than you’re used to, I’ll bet?” She chuckled, showing that she knew the feeling of being overwhelmed by the mass amount of people in her home. It was certainly more than they were all use to.

“That, and it takes some getting use to when you live alone.” He chuckled back.

They stood there on the porch looking out into the street. It had stopped snowing not long seeing as the street was covered in a new layer of snow, showing the indents of tires. All but a few houses were decked out with colorful lights and yards with blow up decorations covered in snow. Even their own house looked like the epitome of Christmas celebration. It was quiet, peaceful, different from the loudness just on the other side of the door. Lance was thankful for that.

“Something up, hun?” His mom asked finally. Not that neither of them enjoyed the silence between them, but Lance knew she heard what happened in the family room. He knew this conversation was coming up...again.

“Nothing is wrong, actually.”

“Lance…”

“I’m not lying, I promise, mama.” Lance said with a smile, meeting his mom’s gaze. “Everything is fine, I’m just antsy is all.”

“Why? Excited about something? Since you’ve been on your phone almost the entire time that you’ve been home. Someone special?” Samara gave him a knowing look, just like everyone else had just a few minutes ago. But it didn’t feel forced or teasing like earlier, it was calm. It actually questioned him...his mama certainly knew him best.

“Remember that friend of mine I was having issues with…?” Lance asked.

Samara nodded with a hum. “I do. You two got into a dispute and you were being stubborn.”

Lance laughed and nodded. “Thaaat would be the one.”

“What about it?” She asked, moving closer and bundling herself further into her coat.

“Well, we made up...I think.” He said, muttering that last part.

“You think?” Samara raised a concerned eyebrow.

“Well, we still fight and all that, but like...there’s no bite to it. Which I was fully expecting, to be honest, they’re...pretty hot headed...and stubborn.”

“So you did make up with them?”

“Yes. He’s just-”

“He?”

Lance’s mouth slammed shut. He didn’t want to specify who it was…

“Is that why you were so adamant earlier?” She stated rather than asked.

He shrugged and chuckled nervously. “Well, I wasn’t lying when I said there wasn’t a special girl in my life, now was I?”

Samara frowned and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. He knew she knew he couldn’t tell the rest of his family about coming out. At the same time, he couldn’t tell anyone why he was acting the way he was acting around Keith. Too much to tell in one sit down. Maybe Hunk would understand, but to what degree?

Lance’s smile fell a bit and he sighed, giving in to telling his current issue. “Okay, so... He and his family aren’t able to get together for Christmas because they’re busy and he’s the only one who has the day off. So he’s in his apartment - which, by the way, is right across from mine, but in a different building-” His mother chuckled at him as he slowly became more and more animated as he explained his situation. “alone for Christmas. Knowing him, he probably doesn’t even have a tree up.”

“So you’re worried about him being alone?”

“I-No, not that...really...I just...felt bad. _Feel_ bad.” Lance admitted.

“You could have invited him, you know?” Samara told him with a smile as she hip bumped her son.

“I did - no, I _tried_ , but he said no before I could finish. I guess he didn’t want to come because he was too good for...something…” He muttered, almost pouting angrily.

“I think it’s because he didn’t want to feel like a burden, Lance.” And he knew that. He knew and he couldn’t get passed that when he was trying to be nice, he was turned down. Lance wasn’t trying to give him pity, if that’s how it came across. “You haven’t had to spend a Christmas by yourself before. So seeing someone be so alone on a holiday like this is strange to you.” Samara smiled at him and he couldn’t help but smile but smile back. “You’re so caring, hun.”

Lance nodded a bit. “Thanks mom.” His phone in his pocket suddenly vibrated and he felt himself freeze. Quickly, he dug his phone out and peeked at the notification.

It was a skype request from thyr-out-thr826 with the message: It’s Keith. I read the card. Thank you.

“Is that all that has you upset?” She asked, thinking that they had settled everything so they could get out of the rigid cold. Despite having moved from Florida so long ago, the winter was still a harsh adjustment to her aging bones. Her eyebrow raised when she saw him jump at his phone and her words.

“Actually, there was one out of two things I was worried about right now and that one has been taken care of.” Lance smiled as he looked over his phone.

“Oh? What’s the other thing?”

“Is there a place in this house that’ll be quiet tomorrow?”

 

\---

 

And Lance thought his brother’s birthday party was complete chaos...

Forget Hotel McClain, the house reminded him of the description of the apocalypse - it was Christmas apocalypse.

He loved Christmas, he truly did, but holy hell. Almost everyone except those under the age of 14 were in the kitchen helping with last minute cooking before dinner and the amount of plates and silverware he thought you’d only find at a restaurant. Lance and Tajo, however, were in charge of the little ones so they didn’t get into too much trouble. Tajo needed to help Lance understand some of the kids who still spoke little to no English.

Tajo was a few years younger than Lance. He had chocolate brown hair that was buzzed on the sides and just long enough up top to style it with as little hair gel as possible. If he used hair gel. Lance had seen him roll out of the blow up bed in his room with near perfect hair. He was a few shades darker than Lance from the amount of sun he got in Cuba from working as a lifeguard at the beach. It made his already bright brown eyes look brighter. At least his good looks were genetic on both sides of his family.

They played with the young ones, mostly outside. From Red Rover to snowball fights and even a snow person building contest where he a Tajo were the judges. It turned into a tie all across the board. Neither of them could pick the cuteness that was their snowmen and snow women. One thing Lance and Tajo wished they could dub the winner was their cousin Novia’s Rapunzel snow woman. For a 7 year old, it was pretty good, but she also had help from Travis. Inside, they played simple guessing games with the adults, even getting out a deck of cards from on of the Trivial Pursuits they owned.

Time for Lance seemed to speed up and slow down the entire Christmas day. When he had fun, time seemed to go by too fast, but as soon as his excitement calmed down, he became anxious. When was it time to open presents so he could sneak away while they enjoy the unwrapped gifts from under the tree?

Deep breath Lance, he told himself. Deep breath. Just a few more hours. Just dinner, gifts and then you get an hour or so to yourself.

Wait...why did he need to have alone time? Just for a skype call with Keith? Well, he knew why, but for reasons that weren’t even a thing - yet or if ever - to happen. Lance could easily just have the call with Keith and his family and put to rest the rumors that he has a special girl he’s been looking forward to getting a video call from.

Now that he thought about it, that may not be a good idea...After what happened between them on their blind fate a while back, he didn’t want them - specifically his siblings or grandmother - bringing up that they thought Keith was his girlfriend. It’d be offending not only to Keith, but Lance as well, not to mention incredibly embarrassing.

Dinner passed with the usual questions no one really wants to be asked, especially when you have family you’ve never met before seeing it as the perfect opportunity to grill you and your siblings about yourselves. The part that was the hardest was waiting for everyone to get through all the presents. Aside from the kids, Lance was one of the few people to rip through his gifts as fast as possible. He wasn’t not grateful for them, but he had a thing to do.

His phone started to rapidly vibrate as it lied on the arm of the couch. Marcus looked down and snatched it up before Lance could.

“Who’s calling you~?” He teased.

“Marcus-” Lance jumped out of his seat, tossing all the ripped up gift paper to the ground.

“Who’s Keith?” He asked, holding the phone out away from him.

“He’s a friend of mine from school, now give that back!” He grabbed Marcus and pulled him into his lap to get his phone back. Lance twisted enough to toss his brother into his spot on the couch and stood up. “Now, that’s my que! I will be right back!”

“Wait, Lance?” Jessa called out, but he had dashed out of the family room, into the living room and opened the door to the basement. He had set up his laptop down there after everyone went to bed. It was his mom’s idea, seeing as no one really went down there anyways. He messaged Keith to ‘hold onto his mullet’.

Lance slipped on his new blue Studio Beats and called him back, this time on his laptop. When Keith answered, he was sitting at a desk in what he hoped was his apartment. He was wearing a headset with a mic, a long sleeved back shirt, and set in his chair with one plush, plaid covered leg propped up on the seat. The room Keith was in looked dark, minus the light from what was probably his bedroom in the background and maybe a table lamp on his desk.

“And here I called on time.” Keith huffed, shaking his head in disappointment.

“Don’t sass me, mullet! I’m a popular and very loved person in the family! I’m practically a celebrity!”

Keith covered his mouth in an attempt to hide his laugh, but thanks to the mic, Lance still heard it. The sound made his chest swell…He caught himself with how he was feeling and cleared his throat.

“Your apartment looks like a mess.”

“My place looks like a mess? You look like you live in a storage unit.”

“I happen to be in the basement-”

“Your room is in the basement?”

“No, smartass!” Lance ran his hand over his face and carded his fingers in his hair. “It’s the only place where no one would interrupt our call.”

Keith shifted in his seat and moved a little closer to the camera. “Why do you not want anyone to interrupt the call?”

Lance’s mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water, trying to figure out how to explain his reasoning. How if his family, his close family, came down and seen them, they’d assume he was talking to his boyfriend when they had only just really become friends...right?

“They’re pretty loud and in your face sometimes, especially with new people. And I don’t think you want to play 20 questions with my baby sister.” He partly admitted.

“I see.” Keith nodded, leaning back in his chair. “Yeah, I don’t think I could handle that.”

With a shake of his head in agreement, Lance clapped his hands together. “Okay, so! Get the gift bag!” He asked again.

Keith jumped a bit in surprise. He held up a finger and leaned down by his chair, grunting a bit as he was halfway bent over the arm. Popping back up, he held out the white bag, bow still in place and the ripped open card popping out of it.

“I actually opened the card the day you left.”

Just when Lance was feeling his pride swell, he deflated. Not in a bad way.

“WHAT?!” Lance’s head hit the small table his laptop sat on.

“And you completely spelled my name wrong, by the way.” He added.

“Keeeith!!” He whined.

“What? I still made a skype, did I?” Keith shrugged, like it was no big deal. He couldn’t look up at the screen. Lance was sure the only thing Keith could see was the top of his head. “Lance?”

A sigh turned into a groan as Lance sat up, letting his head drop back. Keith was impatient, impossible and didn’t always get a joke. He knew this. Lance should know this!

Stealing himself from his inner selves throwing tantrums and a multitude of profanities at Keith, Lance sat straight up and clapped his hands together - as if that was going to quiet his irritation.

The action made Keith jump on the screen. Lance closed his eyes, took a deep breath and held it. 1, 2, 3, out.

“Okay.” He muttered, finally relaxing his the stiff folding chair. “Well...whatever, without further adieu, open it.” He gestured to the screen, pouting slightly.

A rush of anxiety suddenly rushed through Lance as Keith once again shifted in his seat to sit criss crossed. The bag safely in his lap, he pulled out the red tissue paper. Each piece of paper pulled out set Lance’s nerves on fire as questionable doubt seeped in him.

They didn’t know each other as well as they should have, should Lance had gotten him his present? Should he really have gotten him anything at all??? Was what he got him even appropriate??? Not that it was bad, but-

“A mug?” Keith held up a red mug, barely out of the bag, as he looked at Lance in bewilderment.

Nerves killed with anxiousness, Lance rolled his eyes. “Pull it all the way out nimrod.”

Keith glared at him as he pulled the mug all the way out. Turning the object in his hands, Keith’s expression turned soft.

“You got me a red cat mug?” Keith asked, holding the mug up for Lance to see.

His mug was simple. Large, big handle and a candy apple red. One side had the face and ears of a cartoon like cat the was smirking with a wink and the other with the same face, but it was asleep with white and black Z’s floating just above it’s left ear. Lance had thought he’d done a good job picking that out.

“You don’t like it?”

“No, actually, my, uh...my last mug broke today, so this is…” Keith trailed off with a chuckle. He fidgeted with the mug closely to his chest, looking down at the gift with a shy smile. And if it weren’t for the fact that Keith’s apartment was so dark, Lance would say he seen a blush on Keith’s cheeks...maybe even his nose and ears. “Thank you, Lance.”

He looked up from the mug and gave Lance a rather unfamiliar smile that he didn’t think he’d see. It was soft and meaningful, reaching all the way up to those pretty indigo eyes. He wasn’t sure if he knew that he was making that face at him. It made him forget to ask how his mug broke and why it was the last one.

Lance’s chest warmed and swelled as he let a smile slip.

“Merry Christmas, Keith.” Lance said softly.

“Happy Christmas, Lance.”

“Who the hell says “Happy Christmas”?”

“Oh my god, shut up Lance!”

 

\---

 

New Years came and Lance, ever being someone who wouldn’t want to leave a person out during any holiday he deemed worthy of celebrating, made sure to call Keith again to enjoy the new year together since he was once again alone for the holiday. He was lucky to have called Keith when he did, seeing as he just gotten out of the shower from having to work that night.

“One of the few night a year that every bartender hates to work.” Keith told him, earning a chuckle.

When he finally came home from winter break, he hadn’t expected to see Keith sitting at the little table on his balcony, bundled up in what seemed like three blankets and a jacket. And there, sitting on the table next to a small wrapped present, was the red cat mug he got him for Christmas.

With a smile, Lance climbed out of his window and onto the fire escape to see what made Keith want to sit out in the cold, waiting for Lance to come home. And when he thought that it couldn’t be just to talk, it turned out that was the exact reason why.

It was ridiculous that they decided to do this during the middle of winter, especially at night, but it was enjoyable.

“I was wondering...why were you out here when I got home?” Lance asked, before the two of them headed inside. He hadn’t asked earlier because of the small wrapped present Keith had tossed across the alley at him.

Keith stiffened, his already red cheeks and ears became a few shades darker. He looked down at his mug and tapped the rim with his thumb.

“I just thought someone should at least welcome you home in the new year.”

Lance’s heart flipped and tumbled and did every acrobatic trick it could think of. The face he made must have been pretty goofy when Keith scoffed and bid him goodnight.

“I-wait, Keith!” Lance called, one leg into his window and Keith close to sliding his door shut. Met with an almost exhausted and questioning look, Lance licked his lips and steeled himself to confess. “R-Remember that opening song I did at the lounge before I left for break?”

“I think so...Blue Christmas, right?”

“Yeah, that was, um…” Lance looked down and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment, his cheeks turning as red as the mug he got for Keith. “...that was f-for you, so…” Without looking back up, he quickly said goodnight once again and slipped back into his apartment.

After closing his window, he looked at his late Christmas present. Unwrapping it, inside a little box were two round silver cufflinks with a Sapphire in each. A little note was taped to the inside of the lid.

' **Stop wearing your sleeves up when you perform.** '

Lance couldn't stop the affectionate smile, and he didn't want to.

Since then, Lance and Keith not only talked at work, but they had their almost nightly conversations, even in the cold. When Keith had the day off or got off work before Lance was home from school, he’d work on his next set of projects before walking out to his balcony just as Lance was coming home. And when Lance got to be there first, he would either work on his homework or be working on his next line up for his Friday performances. Sometimes during their conversations, Lance would be doing his school work, sometimes asking Keith for some help from across the alley. Keith was more than happy to oblige him, of course.

Their time alone usually went swimmingly, minus the minor disagreements here and there. At work, to everyone around them, they still bickered like a married couple. Lance had a knack for continuously bugging Keith when he was behind the bar. It got to a point where Lance, rather than head home after his performance, would come out from backstage and hang out with Keith when he wasn’t tending to a customer.

It certainly came in handy when a drunk man or woman came over and started hitting on him or any of the other bartenders. Lance would either woo them or convince them that he or someone else was their boyfriend. In the person’s drunken state, it usually worked, especially since Matt and Keith were mistaken for girls more than one occasion.

The only person Lance never had to interact with, that Keith wished he would interact with, was the man who came every night to creepily, in Keith’s mind, watch Lance perform while enjoying their nightly drink special and leave. The way the man would look at Keith when he sat at the bar always sent shivers down his spine, and when it came to people, it was hard to scare him. Like a thousand knives were just blasted his way with every glance the man made at him.

He never said anything to Lance, Matt, or to Shiro. He never reported it to Pidge or Hunk, to Coran, or even to Allura. The man may put Keith’s nerves on edge everytime he comes in, but he never does anything of suspicion. Never says more than a word to him or anyone around him. Just in, a drink, a hefty tip, and out before he knew it. So Keith did nothing but put up with it.

He was just another customer.

In the meantime, Keith and Matt started going to game night with the Garrison Trio, with Lance and Keith making sure to be the first ones there so that Lance could slowly get everyone else into Supernatural - which worked. Every night, Lance would play a different tune on his piano. Always calming, always heartfelt, and Keith liked to imagine the music was for him. By the time they new it, the weather got warmer and warmer, which made their nightly balcony rendezvous. Even after game night.

Spring was finally here.

...and so was the start of problems.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song(s): Claire de Lune by Claude Debussy, Blue Christmas by the one and only Elvis Presley, and I’ll Be Home for Christmas by Bing Crosby because I love Bing Crosby.
> 
> Yes. I put a lot of music in this and, truth be told, the Christmas music was added in last minute and I finished this a few days ago. Talk about pushing it! And if my Spanish is wrong, PLEASE TELL ME AND I WILL GO IN AND FIX IT!!
> 
> I bet you’re all wondering who in the hell this unnamed mystery man is? Well, you’ll find out here in the next few chapters~
> 
>  
> 
> Night and Day –
> 
> 1 dash of angostara bitters  
> ½ oz ( 15 ml ) of cointreau  
> ⅓ oz ( 10 ml ) of brandy  
> 3 oz ( 80 ml ) of champagne
> 
> Fill up a whiskey sour glass with ice and add the bitters, brandy and cointreau. Top off with the champagne and serve.
> 
> Drink responsibly!


	9. Florida Sunrise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance has the best, most exciting and life changing news of his life! Everything is perfect! Or...so he thinks...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Lookie lookie, I updated finally! And welcome to 2018!
> 
> Plain and simple, this fic is short and sweet. It’s only 12 pages long. Also, I no longer will be updating every third Thursday of the month due to some life problems that need to be solved first. Hopefully chapter 8 made up for the lateness for you all.
> 
> Winter Olympics are on, so chapter 10 is on the back burner right now since I go pretty much MIA during the games -dedicated fan-. So to bidde you all over until the next chapter, [here](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4_c7mSCwpshVcTk8mCaklOGDcEEUANq6) is a playlist I made of the music in order of chapter from S.S.!

**Chapter Nine: Florida Sunshine**

 

Lance sat outside on the fire escape steps, looking over a journal where most of the paper was rather worn, but with pages still fresh and unused. He spun his mechanical pencil around his fingers in thought while humming a tune to himself and jotting down what was in his head. It was never quite right and he would erase it. Lance was attempting to write his own music and lyrics. He needed to do something while he waited for Keith to come back from his shopping trip, something he usually only did on Thursdays or Saturday's.

According to a group chat, that was now including Allura, Coran, and Shiro, Shiro had asked Keith if he wanted to go out to eat with everyone for an early breakfast/late dinner. By which he meant going to the nearest IHOP at 3:30 AM. Which meant Shiro, ever the workaholic, had forgotten to go grocery shopping. Again.

Originally, they only had a single group chat that was made up of just Lance, Hunk and Pidge, strictly for game night. Now that everyone was getting to know each other well, they started the newest group chat that left everyone in a tissy of exasperation and giggles over Shiro - The man who _should_ have all his shit together.

So here sat Lance, working on his own music when he could be getting ready for his spring classes on Monday. Waiting for his mullet for a head friend to get home. His patience was rewarded by the sound of a roaring engine coming down the street. The louder the sound got, the more Lance began to grin.

Lance was extremely excited.

As Keith came rolling into the alley and into the garage, Lance tossed his notebook into his apartment and onto the lid of his piano. When he couldn’t hear Keith’s bike running anymore, he shot him a text to meet him at the usual spot and waited. After a few minutes, Keith came walking out onto his balcony and leaned on his railing. Gloved hands folded, head cocked to the side (rather cutely, Lance might add), Keith stared at him.

“Shouldn’t you be in school, little boy?” Keith asked smirked, knowing full well that would irritate Lance.

Lance felt his eyebrow twitch. “Excuse me, I am taller than you, mullet.” He pointed at him. “And my class was canceled today, Mr. Drop-out.”

Keith scoffed and rolled his eyes. By now, Keith had no problem joking about the fact that he wasn’t in school anymore. As the school year went on for his friends, it became clear that the classes he would be taking if he was still there were horrible. Lance was regretting taking Music Theory again. Not that it wasn’t informative, but Iverson was his professor again, and boy did he love to screw Lance over. Keith had asked him why he keeps taking them if he just keeps getting Iverson, only to be told jokingly that he likes the pain. Hunk and Pidge were also finally taking Music Theory, a different day than Lance, but the two of them were in the same class together. Even now Keith was still used as a comparison and heavily bitched about.

When they asked what made Iverson so mad over Keith, he kept his mouth shut and shrugged, saying that they never got along from the start. It wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the full truth either. It was the only thing Keith still didn’t

“Are you sure it was canceled or are you just skipping?”

Lance gasped in mock horror, his hand splayed over his chest dramatically as if he were truly appalled. “I would _never_ skip a class!”

“Then what was last week with Iverson’s?” Keith retorted.

Silence swept between them while Lance thought.

“I was sick?”

“Sick, my ass.” Keith chuckled. “You’re gonna end up like me if you keep it up.”

“Hey, remember, aside from Iverson I have AWESOME professors this year!” Lance’s delighted grin, and he was truly delighted, nearly touched his ears it was so wide. “My one and only class of the day was canceled because Slav didn’t want to come in today.”

Keith shot him a skeptical look. “Because he didn’t want to come in today?”

“Yep. Something about the threads on one of his carpets wasn’t how they should be for the day and that gave us the probability of failing our class at...idk, some really low percentage, but he didn’t want us all to fail.” Lance said as if it were a common occurrence. It was kinda starting to be just that, though. He seen that he had not convinced Keith whatsoever, so he held up his cellphone. “I have the email to prove what I just said is 100% true.”

“He literally, practically, said fuck class today?” Keith asked slowly, trying to process his own words.

“He literally, practically, said fuck class today.” Lance repeated with a nod and another wide grin.

“How are you all passing so far?”

“We just have to write a small report on how sound waves bounce and email it to him.”

“Oookay then…” Standing up straight, Keith brushed off the dirt and dust off his leather jacket sleeves. “Was you bragging that you had no class today all you wanted to say? Because I have to get ready for work.”

“That was one other thing!” Lance chirped.

“What is it?”

“Can I get a ride to work with you tomorrow?”

For a moment, Keith just stared at Lance, carefully thinking his words before speaking. “ _You_ .” Keith started, pointing at him and then himself. “You want _me_ to give you a ride to work?”

“Yes, I do.” Lance smiled.

Leaning against the brick wall of his apartment, Keith crossed his arms and raised a skeptical eyebrow at Lance. “And how do you plan to get home after your performance? The Lounge closes at 1 AM and I don’t get off until 2.”

“Maybe I’d like to stay and chat with everyone after my routine?” Lance stood up and mimicked Keith’s stance, smiling as if he’s challenging him. Lance knew how he was acting was a bit childish and he probably seemed ridiculous, but the brief smile, the cute huff and the roll of his eyes was worth it. It was all replaced with a blank stare.

“You just want a ride on my bike, don’t you?”

“....maybe. Maybe not! Give me a ride to the lounge and you’ll find out mullet man!” Lance grinned. “But I would like a ride back because I have big news to tell everyone and I’d like to tell everyone in person.”

“You want to tell everyone in the lounge?”

“No, I want to tell my friends in a special way.” Lance smiled.

Lance inwardly crossed his fingers as he watched Keith slowly nod his head.

“Alright, I’ll give you a ride.”

“WOO! Yes!” Lance jumped in excitement and punched the air. “Thank you! So much!” He opened his mouth, but caught himself before he could speak them. Instead, he laughed, albeit nervously, but still overshadowed by his sudden burst of excitement.

When the two of them went into their apartments, Lance’s mind still whirled at a million miles an hour. He was shaking from excitement and fear.

He almost said I love you.

 

\---

 

The next day Keith waited in the alley in front of the main entrance to Lance’s building. His bike parked, he leaned against it as he texted with Hunk and Pidge, asking if they had any idea what had Lance so excited. All they knew was that Lance had come shown up to class as if he had won the lottery and had been practically vibrating with excitement - which was an understatement.

Dressed in his normal clothes, his uniform neatly tucked away in his work bag with a bottle of cologne Shiro sent him for Christmas, Keith tapped his foot impatiently. It was like Lance was trying to get ready for a performance within tonight’s performance with how long it was taking him to just get ready and come DOWN. Keith had only been late to work once in the two years he’s worked at the Lion’s Castle and he was let off the hook. However, Allura was _very_ firm that it not happen again. With that stern look of hers that looked like it could take down a country with those piercing eyes in one foul swoop, Keith didn’t one allow himself to be late another time.

And if Lance didn’t hurry the fuck up, Keith was a dead man. He didn’t need Lance’s everything to give him a heart attack and die. It’s the second time he was late to work was going to be the death of him. Executioner: Allura Altea. Keith made a mental side note to haunt Lance if ghosts really were real.

Not that it would be a bad thing. He’d at least get to see and hear Lance perform.

“I hope I get to pop your cherry red bike’s cherry for a second passenger, because I am ready to ride her hard!” Lance said as he finally walked out, his backpack slung over his shoulder with his outfit for his lineup. He had on his usual green long sleeved jacket with his hands shoved into his pockets.

“It’s not cold enough to be wearing that coat.” Keith said dully, not impressed nor willing to acknowledge the terrible pick-up line. Out of all his lines, that one was certainly the worst.

Lance shrugged and adjusted his bag. “First of all, it’s called style, something you apparently don’t have. And it may not be cold, but the air will be when your playing daredevil on the streets. Isn’t that why you wear your own leather jacket?”

“Shut up.” Keith scowled and tossed his a helmet, Lance catching it with a light hearted chuckle. He wasn’t about to admit that he wore it because of the wind _and_ he thought it was fashionable for him on his bike. He mounted his bike and slipped his own helmet on. “Put your bag on both your shoulders. I don’t want you getting snagged on something and dragged down the street.”

The laughing abruptly stopped. “Wait, that can happen?”

“I don’t know and I’m not willing to find out. Are you?”

Quickly throwing the other strap on his shoulder and shoving his helmet on, Lance mounted onto the bike behind Keith. Lance placed his hands on Keith’s waist, making him a little hyper aware. He expected Lance to continue being the flirt that he was, to make another terrible pick up line like he did earlier, but it never came. Instead, Lance sat there patiently, waiting for Keith to start up his bike.

“You gonna get Red revved up or what?” Lance asked when Keith didn’t do anything but sit there.

A small shiver ran up Keith’s spine when Lance gave his waist a little squeeze. He didn’t know how to take that, but seeing as it was nothing in the way of sketchy, he let it slide and relaxed. He needed to focus on the road.

“Right...Hold on tight.”

With a violent roar of the engine, Red rumbled and purred, the sound reverberating off the walls of the alley almost deafeningly. Lance moved forward more before Keith kicked the kickstand and took off into the street, his chest pressed into his back.

They sped through the streets, though admittedly they sped slower than Keith was used to going for the sake of this being Lance’s presumably first time on a bike. He had expected Lance to grip onto him for dear life and scream out of fear. Instead, Lance screamed at the top his lungs with excitement, whooping and hollering, sounding like he was having an absolute blast.

At a stop light, Keith turned to Lance with a brave grin on his face, unfortunately covered by helmet for Lance to not see. “Put your arms around me as tightly as you can and brace yourself.” Keith yelled over the roar of the engine.

“Why?” Lance yelled back, apprehensive to the notion that whatever Keith was planning was going to be possibly dangerous. Keith only laughed as Lance questioned him.

The light changed from red to green and Keith was off like he was competing in a drag race. He picked up speed the further down the road they went and Lance was yelling at Keith to slow down. Ignoring him, Keith put his plan into motion and popped a wheelie, causing Lance to scream and grip onto him tighter than he was sure he meant to.

With a bounce back to the pavement, Keith slowed down and pulled into the employee parking lot and parked his bike. Keith turned his bike off and looked behind him to see Lance still clinging onto him, the helmet he had on pressed firmly into his shoulder.

“You okay there?” Keith chuckled out after taking his helmet off.

Lance yanked off the helmet and glared at Keith, “Next time, warn me if you’re going to pull an actual stunt like that!” He yelled. His hearing must have seemed fuzzy with how loud he was.

“Next time?” Keith asked amusedly, smirking at his flustered companion.

With an embarrassed growl, Lance hit Keith’s arm with the helmet and dismounted. “Like I said, only if you don’t tell me when you’re going to do a trick! And I’m expecting a ride home, too. The No-Tricks policy still applies of course.” Keith’s amused smirk fell into a soft smile as he watched Lance’s back, his figure heading to the employee entrance.

The way he ran his fingers in his hair to rid himself of the helmet hair he had was cute, Keith thought. He dismounted his bike, grabbed his bag out of his left side saddles and jogged to catch up with Lance just as he opened the door. Lance turned to see Keith behind him and smirked.

“My lady,” Lance teased as he held the door open for Keith to walk in first.

“Not a lady.” Keith chidded as he walked in the building and down the hallway to the workers lockers, expertly weaving between his coworkers that went in and out of the main down stairs kitchen.

“True, but the way you played DDR last week for game night can make any man think otherwise.” Lance countered as he followed the raven, having a lesser time going around the hustle of the nightly Friday rush.

“And what is that supposed to mean?” Keith asked as he turned to look Lance dead in the eye, his brow raised in unamusement.

“Just that everything except your hips, and sometimes your hair if you look at the right angle, and your, uh…” Lance paused, gesturing his hands slowly as if trying to figure out what to say next. He instead cleared his throat and shoved his hands in his pockets. “Just that everything except those two things about you look manly.” Lance nodded, trying to look convincing. Who he was trying to convince that of, Keith didn’t know.

Either way, Keith felt his cheeks burn a bit. “And how would you know that my hips look-?”

“Hey!” Lance chuckled loudly, nervously, pointing to the clock by the door as he backed away. “Would you look at the time? You need to clock in and I need to, um...do a thing!”

“A thing?” Keith repeated questioningly.

“Yeppers! A thing! And that thing is, uh...talk to - Pidge! And Hunk, because stage stuff! So, I’m gonna head up stairs now and I’ll see you later!” Lance rambled.

Keith watched Lance dash off and disappear up the stairs to the lounge. With an endearing smile and a chuckle, he turned into the room to change and clock in for work.

 

\---

 

“Wait, you can’t just certify me here?” Matt asked as he was serving a young woman her drink, their drink special of the night being Florida Sunshines as a way to kick off the warm weather they were finally having.

Coran, who was out to help due to being suddenly short staffed, gave a sympathetic sigh as he peeled orange rindes. “Sorry about that Matt. The only way to get certified is to go to bartending school. Since you’re paying off your loans like Keith is, and since you graduated last year already, I don’t think that you want to go back to school.”

“I thought Keith was certified?”

Keith, who was shaking a metal shaker over his shoulder shook his head. “Are you kidding? Just trying to pay off my own tuition is hard enough. Bartending school is a waste of money.”

“I hate to you Matty boy, but he’s right.” Coran sighed as Matt groaned. “They teach you more about how to do flare than anything else.”

“As long as you read that Bartending for Idiots, you’ll be fine.” Lance said as he slid up to the bar and into a seat in one swift motion.

“Hello Lance, my boy!” Coran greeted.

“Coran, Coran, the gorgeous man! How you doin’?”

“And how do you know I just need the book and not more school?” Matt questioned.

“A little raven told me.” Lance smirked, looking over to Keith and giving him a wink.

“Lance, why aren’t you at sound check with Hunk and Pidge? You go on in 5 minutes!” Keith was flustered in more than one way, both from Lance’s terrible pick up line that somehow _worked_ and the fact that Lance was going to miss his own performance just being out here!

“Did Pidge use that new sound system of her’s that saves the mic settings for frequent performers?” Matt asked before turning to a new customer and handing them a bottle of fancey water, handing one to Lance while he was at it.

“Indeedy she did!” Lance hummed proudly.

“I hope she’s not using her spare time to come up with new stage effects…” Coran muttered worriedly. Keith grinned but had to stifle a chuckle. Two weeks ago Pidge had decided that for one of the songs Lance was singing it should seem like it was raining. Lucky for them, no equipment was damaged. It did, however, help put the final miles on the stage.

“Not this time. Matt laid into her while we were at lunch this week after he found her schemey notes not long ago.” Lance took a large swig of water and grinned. “I don’t think she’ll do it now since she discovered she ruined the stage - and Allura isn’t even making her pay for it since this place will be closed for renovation.”

“Good thing, too.” Coran muttered. “She wouldn’t be getting paid anymore for the amount that stage costs. You know,” He then started with a tug of his mustache. “Allura’s father searched far and wide looking for the perfect woods not only for the stage bu-”

“Lance. Stage. Now.” Keith interrupted with a warning as he put some shots onto a serving tray, ready for a server to come and take it.

“Right! Bookmark that spot Coran! I wanna know what wood he got!” Lance shot finger guns and a wink at Keith. “Make sure you watch my performance or I’ll have to give you a free concert on one of our Gap Dates.” With that, he left the three men to do their job behind the bar.

“You and Lance are dating?” Matt and Coran asked in unison, both seeming more excited than they were letting on.

Keith groaned trying to suppress an blush.

He was gonna kill him.

“We are not dating! And they are not ‘Gap Dates’!”

“Mm~! Denial is strong with this one!” Matt laughed, attempting to sound like Yoda.

In a huff, Keith excused himself to work at the other end of the bar where it seemed to be a little more crowded. The more the crowd, the less he would have to think. His brain didn’t get the memo.

It had been months since him and Lance had met, and months since the two started to get close enough to actually call each other friends. They still fought, but they weren’t hurtful. It was more than them challenging each other - the perfect push and pull to gain mutual respect. Everything they ever talked about when they could was always just between them. The literal and physical gap between their buildings was a comfort to Keith when they talked. It was enough that when the conversation got too heavy or too personal, both of them had an escape route without the other reaching out to stop them.

Unlike Lance, Keith never gave the occasion a name, never knew that it needed one. It was just them texting each other to see the other on their balcony or waiting for the other to come out when they got home, knowing full well that certain day they’d be out there without any need to say otherwise.

It just...happened. It became natural for them. For Keith.

The words Gap Dates struck something within him. The name was...cute. But despite the name being incredibly cute, Keith didn’t know how to handle the fact that the word ‘date’ was integrated in there. Sudden memories of them teasing each other, Lance’s flirting, the looks Keith caught out of the corners of his eyes, the looks he caught himself making at Lance...and yeah, he could finally see why Lance would call them that when they weren’t actually dates. At the same time, it was typical Lance, making everything out to seem different than what they really were. And they were not dating.

But their actions made him question things after so many months.

The stage’s lights came lit up dimly. Soft violet, yellow, pink and white showed Lance standing at the mic with his hand on the stand and head hung for effect. The in house instrumentalists stood behind him at the ready, all of them ready for their que. It made everyone in the bar hush and turn to the stage, the bustle at the bar suddenly slow as everyone there was waiting for Lance to start.

Lance had become a favorite at the lounge next to STAR-Dust. To Keith’s surprise, Lance’s apparent biggest fan, the man who came every night for Lance’s performances, wasn’t here for the first time. It raised suspicion in him, but he couldn’t help but take the sigh of relief to know that the man was so far not at the bar as usual.

Lance’s head sprung up, his apparent signal for the music to start.

“ _I miss the taste of a sweeter life_

_I miss the conversations_

_I’m searching for a song tonight~_

_I’m changing all of the station_.”

His head tilted slightly, leg bouncing lightly to the beat, Lance sang with emotion. More melancholic than the song needed to be, and his expression near heartbreaking, almost like he was remembering something as he sang.

“ _I like to think that we had it all_

_We drew a map to a better place_

_But on that road I took a fall…_

_Oh baby why did you run away?_ ”

Keith had heard Lance sing songs that were portrayed so well that they almost seemed that was how he felt, but his looks as he continued to sing where otherwise. It almost unsettled Keith with how much Lance could change his attitude for a performance at the drop of a dime.

His thoughts were cut short when Coran called out to him to take over the front for him. Coran was the bar manager after all, he had other business to attend to in the back. With a last glance, Keith turned from the stage and got back to work, only listening at Lance’s voice as he sang song after song. One, however, seemed to be completely new.

Did Lance write it?

 

\---

 

Time couldn’t go by fast enough for Lance.

As soon as he finished singing, using his own original song that he wrote for class as his ending number, he got a bigger applaud than he had anticipated. Even as he sat in his dressing room, waiting for everyone to be finished with work, he practically vibrated with adrenaline.

Lance looked around the dressing room. It was small, but comfortable and clean. Warm and welcoming compared to both the practice and dressing rooms at school. At school, the walls were white and cold, as if telling you that your only purpose was to practice, study, test, practice, study, test, rinse and repeat.

Rinse and repeat.

Rinse and repeat…

“Can I come in?” A voice came from the open door with a knock on the frame. Lance looked up to see Shiro standing there with a smile.

“Of course! Is something wrong??” Lance sat up in his chair at the counter.

“Just playing messenger dog until I have to go on and the lounge closes.” Shiro shrugged.

“For your brother or our lovely princess?” Lance asked suavely.

“Only in your dreams Lance. And I’d appreciate it if you didn’t say it like that.” Lance watched him physically cringe, his smile turned a little nervous. Lance himself cringed and apologized. “I’m here because it’s closing time.”

“What? It’s closing time already?” Lance shrieked. “I didn’t even get to see you guys perform!” He finished with a dramatic sob. Admittedly, despite his over dramatics, he really wanted to see Shiro and his band play. He never had the chance to until tonight, and he didn’t even catch it.

“Allura thought we should all meet up at the bar since Coran, Matt and Keith are still cleaning up.” Shiro said after a chuckle at Lance.

“Alright.” He groaned out as he stood from his chair, looking a little displeased.

“What’s with that tone? I thought you had extremely exciting news to tell us?” Shiro teased.

“Oh, boy do I! I was just hoping to get back on the stage and tell everyone.” Lance admitted.

“That great of news?” Shiro asked as they walked to out into the lounge.

Lance laughed, giddy. “Shiro, you guys have no idea!”

“About what?” Hunk asked as Shiro and Lance walked up to the bar. Allura, Pidge and Hunk were sitting on barstools while Keith, Coran and Matt were tidying up the bar. They stopped what they were doing as Shiro joined the others in a stool. It made all of their eyes land on him, and suddenly, he felt more nervous than excited, but he pushed the feeling down.

No matter how he presented to them, he knew they’d be happy for him. Incredibly happy for him!

“Well?” Coran pushed after Lance was silent for a little to long. He looked at all his friends individually, his eyes landing and Keith last. The silence, he realized, was deafening.

“Well,” Lance started after clearing his throat. “I have, as you all know, a big - very big! - announcement to make!” He said with as much confidence as possible, it was enough to make them all lean forward in anticipation. Yeah. His friends will support him. If anyone, even when he’s gone, they’ll still be here and will still cheer him on. He worked his ass off for this, prayed for it, and was finally answered. “I was recruited at school by a record company and they asked me to sign with them!”

An eruption of cheers came from his friends. Hunk and Allura were so excited for him that they flew out of their seats and wrapped Lance up in the tightest hug they could muster up. Hunk’s was so strong it lifted both him and Allura off the ground. Keith about leaped over the bar to hug him as well, while Matt, did in fact do this to join in the group hug.

Keith and Coran walked around to join them, with Shiro and Pidge up next. They were smart enough to know not to jump in first when huge news like this happened. Allura and Hunk were very strong after all, but at least Coran knew when and how to hold back. Lance had been warned, but it the crush was worth it.

As they congratulated Lance, he felt his heart swell with pride and love. Again, he was reminded of how homely his dressing room felt. That’s what this place was to him, a second home, a second family.

The group broke away to give Lance some room to re-inflate his lungs from Hunk and Allura’s hug. “So who is this record company?” Shiro asked, his smile was wide and full of pride that reached all the way to his eyes.

Lance chuckled audaciously, looking at them like they were nuts, “Who else other than Empire Records!”

The deafening silence returned. The proud smiles lost to the wind as if they were nothing but brief a mirage. It was like they were all shellshocked with the news. And it wasn’t good news judging from the looks they had on their faces. Glares and frowns were now his reactions and not everyone could look at him now.

Lance’s excitement was shot, fear and confusion melted it away, but his smile stayed on despite how nervous and confused it was, how he felt - what did he say wrong this time?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Isn't amazing how a major confidence boost and an awesome opportunity like Lance's can make you extra confident on your ability to flirt? And oh boy, what did Lance say that killed the mood??? What happened to the weird guy Keith always sees during Lance’s performances? And what happened to the creepy guy Keith keeps seeing???
> 
> Just to get my elephant out of the room: my response to comments isn’t slow or nonexistent because I don’t care, I just have to stop and think of how to respond to them in a way that doesn’t spoil anything. I’m also getting used to even getting positive comments. So, night before I have to update, I’ll be responding to comments. Think of it as a way to give you a heads up that I’m updating. =)
> 
> Anyway, I named this Florida Sunrise because Lance is from Florida and our sweet boy is a ball of sunshine anyways, but in this chapter I wanted him to feel radiant.
> 
> Song: Maps by Maroon 5.
> 
> This chapter’s drink: Florida Sunshine -
> 
> 2 oz ( 60 ml ) tequila  
> ½ oz (15 ml ) grenadine  
> 2 oz ( 60 ml ) orange juice  
> 2 oz ( 60 ml ) pineapple juice
> 
> Fill a collins glass with ice and pour everything but the grenadine into the glass. Using the edge of the glass, slowly pour the grenadine down the side of the glass so it settle into the bottom to make a small red layer.


	10. Empire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Every industry has a top dog, the revered, the ultimate alpha, a king.
> 
> And every king has a great and feared empire.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, look! A late as balls update!
> 
> I apologize for this being so short and so late. A lot of things have happened since I last updated that have hindered me from finishing this, despite this being so short. I’m just glad I was finally able to get this chapter finished, though! It wasn’t meant to be a very long chapter as it is, but I didn’t expect it to be this short. Either way, I enjoy chapter 10 ( Finally... )!

**Chapter Ten: Empire**

  
  
  


-click-

“Empire Records makes hit records once  _ again _ with celebrity Kimmy Card-”

-click-

“-p and coming music sinsation Paul Rogan, signed with Empire Records, caught in another video scand-”

-click-

“Allegations against the longtime successful world record label Empire Records have surfaced once again with suspicion of involvement with the Galra Mafia-”

-click-

“-marks the 20 year anniversary of the death of Empire Records’ CEO and owner Zarkon Dario’s wife Honerva Dario. As you remember, Mrs. Dario passed away in a horrible accident with the suspicious involvement of the Galra Mafia-”

The sound of one of the female host on the currently top entertainment news channel played lowly in the unnecessarily large, dark office of Empire Records. The channel talked of old news on deaf ears.

With few dim lights, the television adjacent to his desk, his computer screen, and the half drawn black curtains letting in only an inch of the setting sunlight in, and the iris purple sectional in front of the tv that hung on ash colored walls, the room looked more like a lair than an office. A twin of the sectional was placed on the other side of the office that would give a better view of the city; a decent sized liquor cabinet by the silver double doors to give off a small look of a lounge. A long gray ornate rug on a darker gray carpet that went from the doors to the two iris purple matching chairs sat in front of his dark purple and black desk. 

Zarkon sat alone in his office, preparing for tomorrow’s meeting with his soon-to-be addition to his record label. Months ago, he went into The Lion’s Castle out of curiosity of the unusually large crowd walking into the the lounge as his car passed by one night. He was very surprised to see that the lounge was doing better than he had thought it would be after having not been there in years. And the one talent that was on stage when he walked in and sat down? He didn’t need to see anyone else. Zarkon was impressed by the Latino singer that belted his routine that night. After that, he made sure to stop long enough to have a mediocre cocktail and a wonderful performance.. He never knew the man’s name other than his stage name: El León con Encanto. He would have scouted him had he had the boy’s actual name, only he wasn’t given the opportunity.

Thanks to last weekend, after he ran into those infernal ingrates Allura and Coran, the current owners, he didn’t think he would get the chance to. As he was walking out, he came across them at the elevator. He never tried to hide that he was there nor was he banned from their establishment, so he had no need to sneak around. They had informed him that he was more than unwelcome and should keep to his vices. However, Zarkon didn’t leave there without the final word, recommending that they should try harder if they actually wanted to keep unwanted guests out.

It wasn’t until last week, however, when he made a rare personal visit for a scouting at Garrison University. It was the best in the city for turning out finamonal musical talent, despite the fact that most of them had a hunger for the party life from it. Luck was certainly on his side when he arrived earlier in the week.

 

\---

 

Zarkon walked the empty second floor corridor of H hall with the head of the music department. It was quiet, minus the dull echo of the school’s band practice farther down the hall and the clicks of their shoes. The director nervously drawled on and on, the usual rehearsed speech every school director seems to give when he arrives. The progress of the students, how great of an honor it was to have him at the school again, it was boring. It made it clear that the man was new to this job.

As they drew closer to the end of the hall, one of the class doors swung open and students began to file out. They stopped to let the students quickly disperse, and as he scanned the seemingly uninteresting students, brown hair and tan skin belonging to a familiar lanky Latino walked out of the room with papers stuck in the pages of his textbook. And as he walked out, a slips of paper fell out to the floor.

Zarkon walked up and picked up the papers, his eyes scanning the sheet. They were lyrics at the top of the music sheet. A work in progress, but they weren’t bad. “What class is this again?” He asked, interrupting the poor distressed director without so much as a glance away from the sheet.

“O-Oh, that would be the music composition class. Some of the students who take it write their own original music as they take the class. If you would like, you can sit in on the next class-”

He looked up at the edge of one of the papers and finally seen the name. “No need. There is already a student who I have had my eye on for quite some time now.” Zarkon finally turned to the director. “Please call Lance McClain into your office. I would like to have a quick word with him.”

Twenty minutes later, Zarkon sat in the music directors office chair, with Lance sitting across from him. Lance looked scared and awed.

“You play at the Lion’s Castle.” Zarkon stated after tossing the missing papers on the desk.

“How-How do you know that?” Lance asked after a moment, having reached into his bag and pulled out his textbook for his composition class. He had seemed very confused as to how Zarkon had obtained his music.

“I had the pleasure of seeing you perform on more than one occasion, I assure you.” Zarkon said vaguely. He watched as Lance perked up. Zarkon had thought he would have to use quite a bit of convincing, but it seemed he reeled him in with just that. It was entertaining. “To make this blunt, now that I finally have your name and have seen your lyrics, I have a proposition for you.°

“A prop- you want to make me a prop-!” Lance stuttered out, ready to jump out of his chair and hit the roof.

“I am here to recruit talented people and make them into stars and you have gained my attention. I would like to sign you to Empire Records effective immediately.”

“Really?!” Lance blurted out, jumping out of his chair enough to land at the edge of his seat. “You’re not joking with me, right? This is seriously happening??”

“I don’t joke.” Zarkon deadpanned. It seemed to do little to damper the young man’s spirits. “Unfortunately, I do not have the papers with me as I wasn’t expecting to find neither you nor any actual talent this time around.” He glared at the director, making the man shrink more into himself.

“When will you have the papers?” Lance asked.

“5 PM sharp this upcoming Saturday at Empire Records. The papers will be printed and ready for you.”

 

\---

 

He had left that day proud but irritated that he didn’t have his papers, having expected to be unimpressed enough by any of the current talent there. To think, twice now he had finally found some promising talent at that miserable college with a poor excuse of a music program. This time, it was someone from The Lion’s Castle as well.

A sudden beep from his desk brought him from his thoughts.

“Sir Dario, your usual car for The Lion’s Castle tonight has been prepared.” Came a deep and scratchy feminine voice from the intercom on his desk.

“Cancel that. I won’t be needing to go to that wretched place anymore.”

“Yes sir.”

“And bring in Sendak.”

“Of course sir.”

Zarkon sat back in his chair and looked over his documents. Not that they needed to be looked over really, but it was better than looking at nothing.

He quickly changed the channel before the gossip and old news got to his head.

-click-

“-nd despite the vigil that fans have put up outside of Empire Records, they have made no comment about the mysterious death of Honerva! Not even her son or her own husband Zarkon have said a word! No one word! Can you believe that? I doubt she’s even dea-!”

-click-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like I said, it was short ( very short ), but there were key elements that needed to be addressed and some foreshadowing that would have been awkward in both the previous and next chapter. At first this was going to be uploaded for the sake of this being done, but I wasn’t okay with how it was, only to realize I had a missing element that would have make the next chapter confusing.
> 
> This chapter’s drink: Empire -
> 
> 1 oz ( 30 ml ) gin  
> ½ oz ( 15 ml ) apple brandy  
> ½ oz ( 15 ml ) apricot brandy
> 
> Pour gin and brandy’s into a shaker filled with ice, stir well but gently. Strain into a martini glass. A cherry for garnish is always optional, but hey, it’ll be alcohol infused by the time you down the drink.


	11. Alabama Slammer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tension runs high between everyone as Lance learns the truth. At least, the parts that Keith knows.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, it’s been a while since I update, but simplest excuse I can give for this being late is that 1: depression is a bitch and 2: current familial issues got in the way. But this is finally done and I’m happy with how this came out. It may seem a little out of character at first, but keep reading and it’ll explain why it seems so.
> 
> Heads up though: Next time I update will probably be in a month or two just because of the situation I’m in.

**Chapter Eleven: Alabama Slammer**

  
  


Panic.

Panic and anxiety started to arise in Lance because he didn’t know what he did or said wrong.  _ Again _ .

The stares he was receiving from his friends burrowed into him, a mix of emotions that were all so negative. Lance felt like he could suffocate on it. He forced himself to take in a deep breath, only to let it go with a strained and nervous chuckle, confused and unsure of what he should do.

“Wh-What?” His eyes roamed around his friends, hoping he could get an answer out of them from just a look. The moment his eyes landed on Keith’s, he felt himself shrink in on himself. He looked ready to kill.

“Lance…” Allura started, only to fail to continue whatever it was she wanted to say. She couldn’t even keep eye contact with him when he looked to her.

Lance watched everyone finally look away from him. Conflicted, angry, sad, disappointed and it made him angry. Furious. They were all hiding things from him and he didn’t know why or what they were. Not once had they ever alluded to what it all was, just telling him that he didn't need to know. That wasn’t his problem, didn’t need to involve himself in it all.

He felt that pent up irritation and anger finally snap.

“Don’t ‘Lance’ me!” He snapped. It pierced through the entire lounge, co-workers who walked around and tried to ignore the tense atmosphere stopped where they were. It caught all of his friends’ attention again, finally looking up at him. They were shocked that he had yelled. That this ball of sunshine had suddenly burst. “I got a chance to make a true career out of my music and none of you can throw me a bone and even  _ pretend _ to be happy for me!”

“Lance, it’s not -”

“You two especially!” Lance shouted, unable to hide the hurt in his voice as he cut off Hunk and stared him and Pidge down with a piercing glare. “You two know how badly I wanted this, that it didn’t matter who I signed with and you both agreed-!”

“Yeah, any label except Empire Records!” Hunk cried out.

“And how exactly was I supposed to know that?!” Lance yelled back.

“How did he even hear you sing? He’s never once gone to any of the school festivals or other performances and you never get past the auditions to perform them!” Pidge questioned.

“Uh, it’s called watching my performances here at the lounge!” Lance growled.

“Is that why he was coming here?” Allura grew cold, her gaze piercing.

Shiro’s attention quickly shifted from Lance to Allura in disbelief, his voice quiet, but nowhere near calm. “You knew he was coming here?”

“We only just found out last week-”

“You too Coran?!” Keith shouted. “And neither of you bothered to say anything to anyone?!”

“He wasn’t here tonight, so there is no reason to panic anymore,” Matt finally spoke up. “aside from…” He sighed and shook his head. “Lance, you-”

“No.” Lance said adamantly. “No, I won’t listen to what you have to say. To what  _ any _ of you say until you give me the exact reason you’re so against this. Why you’re so against a step forward in a career I have worked so hard to get to.” He swallowed thickly, trying to hold back the tears he oh so wanted to shed. But instead, he shook his head and took a step back, turning his back to his friends in case his tears slipped. “I’m going home.”

“Wait, Lance-” Shiro started and everyone followed suit with protests. Lance, however kept walking before disappearing behind stage towards the green room he was using.

 

\---

 

“Wait, Lance-” Shiro started, and when Lance left to backstage, everyone but Coran made to follow after him.

“Hold on there!” Coran called out. “Don’t follow after him.”

“What?” Hunk spoke up, appalled. “We, myself included if I might add, just hurt my best friend over issues we should have told him a long time ago rather than make it a big deal - and I’m going to right that wrong!”

“And I understand that. We all do.” Coran admitted. “Give him time to cool his jets and then we’ll tell him our reasons.”

“We didn’t tell him because he didn’t need to get involved and we still don’t! Everyone knows Empire industry is corrupt -  _ Lance  _ should know that as well! It’s all over the news!” Keith shouted.

“Except he apparently doesn’t and he is involved now.” Pidge frowned. “Who knows if this would have happened or not if we had told him the first time he asked. He wanted this so badly… Why did it have to be them? He wasn’t even...” She mumbled to herself, her thought trailing off her tongue. Pidge couldn’t help but bite her lip, disappointed in herself for joining in crushing Lance the way they did.

Keith scowled at the floor with his fists clenched tightly. “What I want to know is why you two knew that Zarkon was here.” He looked up and glared at Allura and Coran. “You two know full well what happened to Shiro because of him and you didn’t say anything to us to be on the lookout for him?”

“Keith,” Shiro walked over and placed a hand firmly on his brother’s shoulder. “you guys never would have known it was him when you seen him. None of you except for Allura, Coran, Matt and myself know what he looks like because we wanted to keep you guys as far away from him as possible.”

“So that’s an okay excuse to let him come in here and ruin everything?! We could have met him on the street and never even known, Shiro!” Keith shouted. “Zarkon ruined your life. If we had known that he was coming here, we could have kicked him out a long time ago and Lance wouldn’t be in this position!  _ We _ wouldn’t be in this position!”

“We didn’t know until last week and Lance never met him until recently… Unfortunately, what’s done is done and there is nothing we can do about it now.” Allura sighed. “Like Coran said, let’s let him cool down from this and then we’ll tell him.”

While everyone nodded in agreement, Hunk and Keith looked at each other. Though both knew different sides of Lance and, yes, Hunk knew Lance the longest, they knew they couldn’t just sit there and twiddle their thumbs. As Hunk made his way towards the stage, Keith jumped the bar with the same idea. 

They needed to talk to Lance.

Neither of them said a word to each other, knowing that they both had to right a wrong they all made.

Hunk knocked on the door. “Lance, it’s Hunk and Keith. We...we need to talk.”

When they didn’t hear a response, Keith, ever the impatient person, rapidly knocked harder on the door. “Lance, come one! We know you’re mad but…” Without waiting for a response, he growled as he opened the door.

It was empty. All of Lance’s things that he brought with him in his bag were gone. On the mirror was a note. When they walked in, Hunk walked over to the mirror to read the note.

“I drove him here, how is he gonna get home?” Keith asked. “We don’t live in walking distance from here-“

“He took the bus.” Hunk answered after reading the note out loud, ripping the note off the mirror and holding it up for Keith to see. He sighed. “Go talk to him tomorrow, would you? I have a date with Shay tomorrow and you live next to him.”

“Why not call him tomorrow before you go?” Keith asked.

“We all messed up tonight. I don’t think a simple phone call is gonna solve the problem. He’d just hang up, even on me. Try going over to his apartment at some point and talk to him for me? For all of us? You do live in the building next to him.”

Keith bit his tongue for a moment, not wanting to argue that he wasn’t the best person to do this. “Yeah, I will. I know how hard it is for you two to meet up. So Lance will get it.” He assured him.

Hunk smiled and nodded for a moment. “Right. Well, I’ll, uh...leave it to you then.”

“Um, Hunk?” Keith started as Hunk started his way out of the dressing room. “What’s Lance’s apartment number?”

 

\---

 

That morning, Keith realized it was one thing to stand outside the building that sat across the ally and look at it, but another thing when you’re inside. He stood in the hallway in front of room 307 in Lance’s apartment building, staring at the dark wood door that seemed to loom over him. According the Hunk, this was Lance’s apartment number. The hallway alone was nice, much nicer than his own. Rust brown walls, light wood banisters with shiny metal decals and stairs to match. It was rustic and modern. He could only imagine what the inside looked like now.

He sucked in his breath and held it as he knocked on the door. As the seconds ticked by, Keith began to wonder if he missed Lance already. Just as he was reaching to knock again, the door opened.

Lance stood there looking tired and disheveled, his dress shirt half buttoned up. His hair was only half brushed back with hairspray and the other side a little curly and messy, something he knew for a fact that Lance would never be caught with.

“Keith?” Lance squawked. He looked the man in front of him up and down with his tired and his tired eyes blown wide. He then squinted a glare at Keith. “What are you doing here and how did you get my address?”

“Hunk gave it to me last night after you left. Listen, Lan-“

“Nnnnnope!” Lance interrupted and slammed the door in Keith’s face, just as he walked up.

Keith growled. “Lance! Open the door!” He shouted, desperately pounding on the door. “Lance! Come on…!” He shouted a final time. He sighed and let his forehead hit the door. “I know you can hear me, so…”

With another frustrated growl he shoved away from the door and paced up and down the hall outside his door, running his fingers through his hair. As if being bad with people wasn’t bad enough, he was never good at giving apologies, let alone owning up to all of his mistakes. And with the situation as it was, he was on the fence on just letting Lance learn the hard way or sucking it up and risk getting an earful from his friends and brother.

“Patience yields focus…” He took a deep breath in and slowly let it out.

Damn it…he never was good at sucking up his ego either.

Keith walked back over to the door and did a final, more gentle knock. “Lance?” He didn’t hear anything, but continued anyways. “I know you can hear me, but I just wanted...look, I- we…” He sighed, hesitating finishing what he wanted and need to say. “We’re sorry we didn’t tell you anything… I’m sorry, I didn’t tell you anything. But I’m gonna tell you what happened...okay?”

With baited breath Keith waited until he finally heard the door open. Lance had only opened it enough to look Keith dead in the eyes.

“Everything?” Lance asked sternly.

“Everything. At least, everything that I know.” He repeated.  


Lance stared at Keith for a moment longer before opening the door enough for the latter to enter. “I leave in an hour and a half.” Keith nodded as he walked in.

When Keith’s imagined Lance’s place it was very fairly fashionable, messy, lots of useless clutter scattered about. Granted, he wasn’t disappointed in that, but it wasn’t messy. What had to be clutter was placed around his living room like it was meant to be there, but it was obviously wasn’t.

Before he could fully look around and take it all in, he spotted that infamous piano by the window fire escape that Lance played almost every night. The stained cherry wood piano was small, square, and looked old and worn. Pristine white music sheets sat on the piano’s music stand. He could almost see Lance sitting there by the window.

He didn’t play last night...

“Well? Are you gonna tell me or not?” Lance asked impatiently before plopping down on his seemingly fluffy brown couch. Keith rubbed his thumb against his pointer finger nervously before taking a seat on the couch as well.

Keith took a deep breath in and out. “Shiro signed with Empire Records before he went missing. One of Zarkon’s recruiters, Sendak, came out for the school festival and seen his piano performance that my parents and I were attending. My brother and I were excited that he was being recruited, but our parents...not so much. They were glad he was being recruited, but they didn't like that it was Empire.”

“Kinda like how you all freaked out on me last night?” Lance asked, firm, but with less bite than Keith had expected.

He could only nod. “We figured it was because of the hype of what the media made them out to be. He and I came to terms a long time ago that the entertainment industry was dirty business when you get right down to it, so we shrugged it off.” Keith frowned, his eyebrows knitted tightly in anguish. “I did nothing but push and encourage him to sign with them. He didn’t want to take it just yet since he was going to finish school soon, but I told him to take it. I mean, who knows it he would get that chance again - especially with a company as being as ER? I didn’t….we didn’t think he would just...vanish.” Keith bit his lip before looking up at Lance, who stared at him as he was intently listening, drinking in every word he was saying. “He did gigs here and there, promotional stuff that was going to be released and then before anything could happen, he disappeared. No notice for anyone, not even my parents.”

For a moment, Lance was silent before he quietly spoke up. “Keith, what exactly happened to him?”

“I don’t know. He won’t tell me or anyone else what happened, that even if he did, his memory of it all is spotty. Mom said that what happened must have been too traumatic for him to just partly remember an entire year. And he just...appeared one day. His hair partly white, a scar across his nose his skin two shades lighter than I remembered and his arm completely replaced by a prosthetic.”

“And no one knows what happened? What about the police?” Lance quickly interjected, understandably confused.

“That’s the part that makes this so touchy.” Keith looked at Lance seriously, intent on getting his next words across. “They didn’t investigate very far into it. They just said it was probably the stress of school and the high of a young man about to become famous too fast. That Shiro just went MIA to get away from it all. They just completely ignored everything my brother told them.”

“I don’t buy that for a second that Shiro would do that.” Lance argued.

“No one does. But Shiro just keeps telling us to drop it. He just wants to say some things happened and that was it, but it never sat well with me.” Keith finally leaned back, feeling relieved finally. “He will say is that he knows they’re just as corrupted as the media has stated them to be and then some.”

“Okay, I gotta ask it: Did Zarkon castrate Shiro?”

Keith opened his mouth to yell at Lance before he shut it and and actually thought about it. “I’m...not actually sure, but maybe that explains a lot as to why his last relationship went to hell.”

Lance’s eyes rounded. “Dude, I was joking!” He shouted, appalled.

“Either way, that’s not even the end of it.” He muttered, ignoring Lance.

“Not the end of it? What else could there be?”

“Allura and Coran know Zarkon. Her dad and him used to be really close friends and Zarkon.”

“That’s why they-”

“Yeah. They didn’t go into much detail with us because they assumed they wouldn’t need to deal with him again. They were wrong.” Keith looked at the hardwood floor, confused and a bit distressed. “Why did Pidge and Hunk freak out with us?” He asked, his attention returning to Lance.

The brown haired man took a deep breath and shook his head. “Because out of nowhere I got a chance at a record deal. Because I didn’t tell them I got a chance of a lifetime at the beginning of the week. Because they knew how badly I wanted this. As much as I dream for the big stage, I wanted to finish school before I went looking for a company that would want me and they knew that So I never talked about it any further than that. I don’t even have tapes made to send in.” He shifted in his seat to face Keith better. “So when this happened, I got excited. I ignored the rumors about Empire from magazines and TV that they were what they were meant to be: rumors.”

“So you were just as blindsided…” Keith muttered.

Lance nodded a little. “Not like you guys, but...yeah. I was.”

Silence was drawn between them. It wasn’t as stiff as it could have been, but it was still uncomfortable. It was quickly disrupted by the sound of Lance’s phone alarm sounding off.

“I need to finish getting dressed.” Lance muttered before standing up. Keith stood up after him with a nod, his eyes still on the floor. “Listen, Keith…”

He looked up to see Lance looking at him sternly, eyes sharp and determined to keep his attention on him. “I’m not going to sign with him. I’m just meeting him about signing with him, even if he does have the papers ready for me.” Lance placed his hand on his shoulder tightly, only to give him a smirk. “So make sure you tell them that when you report to them.”

“You can tell them that yourself after you see him.” Keith said with a small smile. “And call Hunk when you’re home, too.”

“Right, he had a date with Shay across town today, didn’t he?” Lance chuckled lightly. “I’ll call him, I promise.”

“Good. I’ll see you later then.” Keith said as he started to make his way to the door.

“Wait.” Lance called out, gabbing Keith’s wrist. “I just...one more question.”

Keith looked from Lance’s face, to where he held his wrist oh so gently and back. “Okay?”

“Why did you leave school?” It wasn’t asked harshly or condescendingly. It was soft spoken, confused and concerned. He looked away, unable to keep looking at Lance.

“If you asked someone who works there, they’ll tell you it was all disciplinary issues. That I got into fights with teachers and students. I mean, it’s not...completely untrue - I did punch Iverson, but...I know Garrison is hiding something after they just let go of one of their number one students in the school without any issue. No one tried to stop him. I tried to prove something was strange about it after Shiro went missing and...the rest is history.”

“Strange how?” Lance asked.

“I don’t know for sure, but it just...everything seemed fishy. I was treated differently and when Shiro disappeared...it was like he never existed until he suddenly reappeared.” Keith watched Lance smirk

“You worried about me, Kogane?” Lance teased.

“We just don’t want to see the same thing happen to you Lance.” He stopped short of telling him how much he didn’t want to see Lance get hurts. “Zarkon is up to some shady shit that is bad enough for my brother to lose an arm over and no one knows what it is or why. Everyone who signs with him always ends up on the news because of accidental death - if they’re accidental - at some point. Shiro was just a missing case before he could even do anything to get his name out there.” He admitted.

“I’m not gonna end up like Shiro or the others who probably just partied to hard.” He reached up and squeezed Keith’s shoulder reassuringly. “I’m also not signing papers, remember mullet?” Lance didn’t let go of Keith’s shoulder until he nodded with a yes. “Good. Now. I need to finish getting ready.”

“Don’t dress up too nicely or else Zarkon might think he has a new artist.” He said as he slowly backed up towards the door.

“Nuh huh, I’m gonna dress to the 9’s no matter what.” Lance retorted as he also slowly walked towards Keith.

“And why is that?” Keith asked, his hand on the knob.

“Because if it’s the last time I see Zarkon, after I call him deciding  _ not _ to sign with him, then it’ll be the last time he’ll see this best dressed best artist in person  _ ever _ .” Lance smirked and shot finger guns at him. Keith imagination could have sworn he seen those pearly white teeth literally shine. Despite being used to the finger guns now, it still makes his heart jump when he acts suave.

Keith covered a chuckle with a cough. “Then you might want to dress nicely from now on in case it’s the last time we see you.”

“Oh, you’ll see me mullet. All of you will, even when I’m so famous I’m booked for the rest of my life.”

“Doubt it.” Keith deadpanned, opening the door and walking out.

“Excuse me?!” Lance shouted out the door.

“Write some original music and perform it at the lounge rather than perform other people’s work McClain. Like, something other than playing Kid Rock’s All Summer Long on piano!” He shouted back. He couldn’t hold back the laugh as bound down the stairs and heard Lance sputter incoherently, obviously insulted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song: All Summer Long by Kid Rock
> 
> So some but not all as been revealed, and I know it’s not a lot to give, but too much could be a spoiler and I’m trying to tread carefully with it.
> 
> This chapter’s drink: Alabama Slammer -
> 
> 1 oz ( 30 ml ) amaretto  
> 1 oz ( 30 ml ) sloe gin ( no, that isn’t a spelling error )  
> 1 oz ( 30 ml ) southern comfort  
> 5 splashes of lemon juice ( give or take )
> 
> In a shaker with ice, add ingredients, shake well and strain into a shot glass.


	12. Not an update

I honestly don't want to do this to another story, but I'm putting S.S. on hiatus for a while. While a little bit - like, 2% of it - is because of the bs going on in the fandom, the main reason is real life. Life is taking me away from being able to write the next chapter. It already did so with the last few chapters and I just need to step back and handle life at the moment.

That being said, this isn't being abandoned or anything, no need to panic. I have the story planed out, I just need to go in and rearrange some plot points, consolidate some chapters because the fic as a whole is becoming more lengthy than needed, and there are some chapters that may end up shorter than they should be with points in the story I didn't plan out as well as I should have. I rather have the chapters be long with the plot points I want that will flow well than small short chapters that seem ( to me at least ) to go one plot point at a time.

Point I'm trying to say is I'm not stopping this story, the fandom or ship isn't ruined for me, just certain things have gotten in the way and I need to re-evaluate how I planned this fic to go. And I may add Adam - not that he would be a main derivative character that changes the course of the story ( as far as I've decided, he'd most likely just be mentioned as an ex ), but it's just a thought. Let me know in the comments if that would be something y'all are interested in or not. If not, it's cool! Not like it's a big deal story wise if he's in it or not. =)

Anyway, the next time I update this it might not be until the series ends, which ( for those of you who don't know ), is some time this year. So don't worry guys, the wait won't be a long wait. Things just need to be worked out first for both the story and personal life.

With love and KICK - Joey <3


End file.
